Panthers snap Falcons’ 24-game district win streak
A complete game from starting pitcher Miguel Bustamante, including four no-hit innings, and a three-run home run from Javier Rosales were enough for the O’connor Panthers to snap the Stevens Falcons’ 24-game district win streak.
“We struggled offensively to get things rolling,” O’connor head coach Weston Heiligman said. “(Rosales) with the clutch home run was great. I thought as a team we out-competed guys all night long.”
The last time Stevens lost a district game before Wednesday was 23 months ago on April 22, 2021, in the second meeting that year against the Panthers. This year’s version of the Panthers improved to 4-2 in district play and remained in a tie for second place with Brennan. Stevens fell to 6-1 in District 29-6A play.
“I’m super proud of the streak,” Stevens head coach Preston Rogers said. “To win that many games in this district is a great accomplishment. It started with a group of kids two years ago and last years group. This year we have a lot of new faces, but that streak meant a lot to them.”
Stevens starting pitcher Michael Hernandez threw six innings, giving up three runs on four hits and striking out six. Jeremy Gallardo pitched a scoreless seventh in relief for the Falcons.
Bustamante had a nohitter going through four innings and finished the night giving up three hits and no runs while striking out 10 Falcon hitters.
“I was trying to keep my fastball low and take it out of their barrel zone,” Bustamante said. “It was working, mixing it in and out, up and down.”
O’connor opened the scoring with three runs in the top of the second inning. Third baseman James O’connor reached
base with a two-out walk. Quinten Estrada then moved O’connor to third on a single and reached second on a Stevens error.
Javier Rosales then smacked a Hernandez pitch over the wall in left field for a three-run home run.
“It was electric,” Rosales said. “As soon as I hit it I knew it was going to go.”
O’connor didn’t have another inning like the second. For the rest of the night, the Panthers never got more than two base runners on and had those runners stranded at second or first.
Stevens was able to end Bustamante’s no-hit bid in the bottom of the fifth inning when left fielder Robert Cardenas hit a lead-off single into center field. Cardenas reached second on a sacrifice bunt by third baseman Mickey Martinez. Bustamante was able to strand Cardenas at second after getting strikeouts against Hernandez and designated hitter Cris Chavira.
The Falcons got more runners on base in the bottom of the sixth inning. Stevens was able to load the bases against the Panthers, but the inning ended when first baseman Gabriel Cook was forced out at second base on a grounder hit by Cardenas to Rosales, O’connor’s shortstop.
Stevens got a final chance to salvage a run in the bottom of the seventh. Hernandez reached base with a one-out double to right-center and moved to third when catcher Adrian Becerra reached on an error with two outs. Right fielder Chris Olveda then lined a pitch that O’connor second baseman Estrada jumped up to snag for the final out of the game.
“The kids played hard,” Rogers said. “Anytime we play against O’connor it’s a heated battle. Their pitcher did a little better than ours. We had opportunity, we just didn’t get that hit when we needed to late in the innings.”
O’connor will play Sotomayor on Friday night at Northside Field Two at 7:30 p.m. Stevens will face Warren on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. at Northside Field One. Stevens and O’connor will play each other again on April 22.