SAN JOSE – Gilroy High’s Bubu Garcia tied things at 4-4 with a
towering three-run home run in the top of the sixth inning but it
was Archbishop Mitty who had the final say, scoring the winning run
in the bottom of the same inning to defeat the Mustangs 5-4 on a
rainy Wednesday night in San Jose.
SAN JOSE – Gilroy High’s Bubu Garcia tied things at 4-4 with a towering three-run home run in the top of the sixth inning but it was Archbishop Mitty who had the final say, scoring the winning run in the bottom of the same inning to defeat the Mustangs 5-4 on a rainy Wednesday night in San Jose as part of the Lions Easter tournament at PAL Stadium.
The Mustangs (8-3, 6-2 TCAL) had trailed 4-0 heading into the sixth, and after Taylor Chris, who started on the mound for GHS, scored on an RBI ground out by Jordan Dexter, Garcia delivered the game-tying big fly.
The sophomore shortstop welcomed relief pitcher Brett Fuller into the game by depositing the righty’s first pitch over the left-field wall.
“With our lineup we are never out of a game,” GHS manager Johnny Ramirez said. “They were fired up.”
However, the jubilation was short lived as the Monarchs (15-1) spoiled the Mustangs’ comeback attempt with a well-manufactured run in their half of the inning. A walk, passed ball, bunt single and safety squeeze turned into the game-winner for the Central Coast Section’s third-ranked team.
“We walked away feeling good about ourselves,” Ramirez said. “Mitty is alright. They are ranked for a reason. They are impressive when they swing the bats, but we had them on the ropes.”
The Monarchs, who posted eight hits in the game as opposed to the mustangs four, touched up Chris for four runs in the first two innings, but the senior settled down after the rocky start and recorded seven strikeouts in the loss.
“He again pitched outstanding,” Ramirez said. “He settled in after the first two innings. He is very composed on the mound. He doesn’t get rattled. The guy is competitive.”
The Mustangs wrap up the tournament Friday at 1 p.m. back at PAL Stadium.
