Mustangs come up short in postseason run
COLLEGE STATION — For the first time this postseason, Magnolia West was forced to stretch its starting rotation.
The Game 2 loss to nationallyranked Georgetown on Friday night put the ball in Mustangs senior Zach Wall’s hand Saturday afternoon in Game 3 of the Region III-5A finals at Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park.
Wall gave up one first inning run and that’s all Georgetown needed. The Eagles advanced to the state tournament for the first time since 2014 and the Mustangs’ greatest season in program history concluded on the 1-0 decision.
Wall, who hadn’t pitched extensively since throwing 70 pitches in relief on April 26 in the regular season finale, did all he could to keep the Mustangs (31-7) in contention.
The Air Force Academy signee was mentally ready during the playoff run. Staff ace Connor Phillips and Roberts Revels did such an effective job all year that Wall, who’s usually at shortstop, wasn’t needed to pitch often. He last pitched an inning against Nederland last week.
“I’ve been mainly reliever all year,” Wall said afterwards. “I’ve known since the start of the playoffs that if we made Game 3, I’m going to have to come in here and give us some innings. I did that today, but we came up a little bit short.”
Magnolia West second-year coach Justin Faltsysek knew he could rely on the righty.
“We’ve been using him short relief,” Faltysek said. “Hadn’t been in a Game 3. Zach kept us in the ball game. They got the one run in the first inning and it turned out to be enough.”
Georgetown (40-4-1), ranked No. 11 by MaxPreps, got a lead-off triple by Jeffrey David in the bottom of the first. He then scored on an RBI groundout to shortstop by Wyatt Childress. It was all the Eagles needed.
“They’re hurting right now,” Faltsyek said of his team coming up a game short of Round Rock. “For a team that was picked finish fifth in their district and for everything they’ve accomplished and where they took the program and now making it a reality (I’m proud of them). We can be elite here and get within a game of the state tournament.”
Magnolia West totaled just two hits off Georgetown starter Jack Brinley.
“(Brinley) was locating his pitches,” Faltysek said. “We were out in front on a few of them. I thought we had a few good at-bats and a few hard-hit balls right to them.”
Against reliever Braxton Pearson, the Mustangs had their best chance of the day to scratch out some runs in the top of the fifth inning.
Brody Szako and Brady Huckfelt each reached on errors to start the threat with one out. The Mustangs went to a little small ball again like they have previously this postseason as Huckfelt reached on a bunt attempt. Pearson threw the ball away at second base, making both runners safe.
Dylan Van Wicklen was then hit by a pitch to load the bases with two outs before Carson Carpenter flew out to left field to end the big chance.
“We couldn’t find the holes and we couldn’t get the key hit today,” Faltysek said. “For whatever reason, it was (Georgetown’s) day.”
Wall got out of a huge jam in the bottom of the sixth as he got two outs after loading up the bases. Third baseman Willie Ibarra threw a runner out at the plate and Wall induced a fly out to left field to escape and give the Mustangs one last chance at the plate.
But the one-run deficit couldn’t be made up in the top of the seventh as the Mustangs went down in order on six pitches.
Magnolia West stranded five runners on the day and totaled two hits. Wall went six innings for the complete game with seven hits allowed. He stranded seven total runners.
The Mustangs won’t move on to Round Rock and the state tournament this week. But for Wall, the opportunity to be this close was merely a dream before the season.
“We’re all brothers and we love each other,” Wall said. “At the beginning of the season if you said we would be one game from state, I would say no way.”