Apaches News
Mon, May 10, 2010 - [Baseball]
Photo by Student Athletic Trainer Jessica Lair
By JOE BUIE
Staff Writer, Tyler Morning Telegraph
MCKINNEY - Unlike most of their games against the Metro Athletic Conference this season, the Tyler Junior College Apaches were not able to beat Cedar Valley into submission.
Staff Writer, Tyler Morning Telegraph
MCKINNEY - Unlike most of their games against the Metro Athletic Conference this season, the Tyler Junior College Apaches were not able to beat Cedar Valley into submission.
Instead, the Apaches recorded their first walk-off win of 2010 to advance to the NJCAA Division III World Series.
Josh Salmon's ninth-inning RBI single forced extra innings, and Max Freeman had the game-winning hit in the 11th to give TJC a 4-3 victory Sunday in the finals of the District C Baseball Tournament at Gabe Nesbitt Field.
Having outscored Eastfield and Richland by a combined 29-13 the previous two days, the Apaches (43-12) may have expected similar results against a Cedar Valley squad with a depleted pitching staff.
"We definitely wanted to do that," Freeman said. "It might have got in our heads a little bit, but it's a humbling experience and we can take that to (the World Series) and benefit from it."
The Suns (25-31), however, kept the TJC hitters off balance on a cold and overcast Mother's Day as strong winds blew in from left field. The teams left a combined 23 runners on base and each side had only seven hits.
"Cedar Valley has a good team and they are scrappy, and with the wind blowing in it kind of neutralizes our offensive attack," TJC head coach Doug Wren said. "Their pitchers pitched well, they changed speeds and our guys were just hitting it up in that wind."
The Apaches were held scoreless from the fifth through the eighth, and Cedar Valley grabbed a 3-2 lead in the sixth.
The Suns were one strike away - on back-to-back hitters - from forcing a second championship game before TJC rallied in the bottom of the ninth.
Ryan Willnow ignited the spark with a two-out walk and then advanced to third on a looping single to right-center by Eric Weiss, who was down 0-2 in the count. Salmon, who had been held in check after going 6 for 6 on Friday, also had two strikes before dropping a single into left field to tie the game.
"I've been in this situation before … I fought and fought … I was just trying to put the ball in play and give our team a chance to win," Salmon said. "It was actually a really good pitch. I just kind of leaned out there … it was a curveball low in the dirt."
Two innings later, the Cedar Valley shortstop committed a crucial three-base throwing error that put Willnow 90 feet from home plate with no outs. Cedar Valley then intentionally walked the bases loaded for the left-handed hitting Freeman.
Freeman hit the first offering over the right fielder as the ball one-hopped the fence. Willnow ended up scoring both the tying and winning runs.
"The bases were loaded and no outs, so I was looking to (hit) something in there deep," said Freeman, who hit a long homer to right against Eastfield. "The guy threw a fastball in and my eyes lit up and I took advantage. It was a very good feeling."
The Apaches used five pitchers, and none were better than freshman reliever Derek Miller. The Robert E. Lee graduate pitched four scoreless innings before giving the ball to closer Jason Jester.
The Apaches finished 3-0 in the district tournament to advance to the World Series for the first time since their national championship season of 2007. The event is set for May 22-27 at Mike Carter Field in Tyler.
"It's a great feeling, I'm really proud of them," said Wren, a rookie head coach. "We've worked hard to get to this point. We sat down nine months ago in August as a team for the first time and we talked about the World Series, about playing in front of the home crowd at Mike Carter.
"That's what we're going to be able to realize."
Smoke Signals: The Apaches went 7-0 against Cedar Valley this season. … TJC has won 20 of its last 21 games.
--
Tyler 4, Cedar Valley 3
Cedar Valley 000 012 000 00 - 3 7 4
Tyler 001 100 001 01 - 4 7 1
Justin Stearn, Andrew Jenkins (5), Haden Allred (6), Josh Blunt (10), Cutler Ruby (11) and Aaron Lerma. Payton Parsons, Matt Sheppard (6), Derek Miller (7), Jason Jester (11) and Conn McWilliams. W - Jester (2-0); L - Blunt. 2B - CVC: Kendall Boone; TJC: Max Freeman. SAC - TJC: Josh Bates, McWilliams, Eric Weiss, Matt Adams. SF - CVC: Mike Hungaski. SB - CVC: Boone, Luis DeJesus; TJC: Weiss. CS - TJC: Ryan Willnow. HR - CVC: Greg Govea (solo, fifth inning).
RECORDS - Cedar Valley 25-31; Tyler 43-12.
NEXT UP - Tyler advances to NJCAA Division III World Series, May 22-27, Mike Carter Field, Tyler.
"We definitely wanted to do that," Freeman said. "It might have got in our heads a little bit, but it's a humbling experience and we can take that to (the World Series) and benefit from it."
The Suns (25-31), however, kept the TJC hitters off balance on a cold and overcast Mother's Day as strong winds blew in from left field. The teams left a combined 23 runners on base and each side had only seven hits.
"Cedar Valley has a good team and they are scrappy, and with the wind blowing in it kind of neutralizes our offensive attack," TJC head coach Doug Wren said. "Their pitchers pitched well, they changed speeds and our guys were just hitting it up in that wind."
The Apaches were held scoreless from the fifth through the eighth, and Cedar Valley grabbed a 3-2 lead in the sixth.
The Suns were one strike away - on back-to-back hitters - from forcing a second championship game before TJC rallied in the bottom of the ninth.
Ryan Willnow ignited the spark with a two-out walk and then advanced to third on a looping single to right-center by Eric Weiss, who was down 0-2 in the count. Salmon, who had been held in check after going 6 for 6 on Friday, also had two strikes before dropping a single into left field to tie the game.
"I've been in this situation before … I fought and fought … I was just trying to put the ball in play and give our team a chance to win," Salmon said. "It was actually a really good pitch. I just kind of leaned out there … it was a curveball low in the dirt."
Two innings later, the Cedar Valley shortstop committed a crucial three-base throwing error that put Willnow 90 feet from home plate with no outs. Cedar Valley then intentionally walked the bases loaded for the left-handed hitting Freeman.
Freeman hit the first offering over the right fielder as the ball one-hopped the fence. Willnow ended up scoring both the tying and winning runs.
"The bases were loaded and no outs, so I was looking to (hit) something in there deep," said Freeman, who hit a long homer to right against Eastfield. "The guy threw a fastball in and my eyes lit up and I took advantage. It was a very good feeling."
The Apaches used five pitchers, and none were better than freshman reliever Derek Miller. The Robert E. Lee graduate pitched four scoreless innings before giving the ball to closer Jason Jester.
The Apaches finished 3-0 in the district tournament to advance to the World Series for the first time since their national championship season of 2007. The event is set for May 22-27 at Mike Carter Field in Tyler.
"It's a great feeling, I'm really proud of them," said Wren, a rookie head coach. "We've worked hard to get to this point. We sat down nine months ago in August as a team for the first time and we talked about the World Series, about playing in front of the home crowd at Mike Carter.
"That's what we're going to be able to realize."
Smoke Signals: The Apaches went 7-0 against Cedar Valley this season. … TJC has won 20 of its last 21 games.
--
Tyler 4, Cedar Valley 3
Cedar Valley 000 012 000 00 - 3 7 4
Tyler 001 100 001 01 - 4 7 1
Justin Stearn, Andrew Jenkins (5), Haden Allred (6), Josh Blunt (10), Cutler Ruby (11) and Aaron Lerma. Payton Parsons, Matt Sheppard (6), Derek Miller (7), Jason Jester (11) and Conn McWilliams. W - Jester (2-0); L - Blunt. 2B - CVC: Kendall Boone; TJC: Max Freeman. SAC - TJC: Josh Bates, McWilliams, Eric Weiss, Matt Adams. SF - CVC: Mike Hungaski. SB - CVC: Boone, Luis DeJesus; TJC: Weiss. CS - TJC: Ryan Willnow. HR - CVC: Greg Govea (solo, fifth inning).
RECORDS - Cedar Valley 25-31; Tyler 43-12.
NEXT UP - Tyler advances to NJCAA Division III World Series, May 22-27, Mike Carter Field, Tyler.
Link to Original Article: http://tylerpaper.com/article/20100510/SPORTS/100509899
