Nazareth trailed 13-11 heading into the bottom of the eighth, and the first two batters of the inning went down quietly. However, Trapper Neill (with two strikes on him) and Alejandro Guerrero hit back-to-back singles to bring the potential winning run to the plate.

Cameron Pohlmeier then doubled to left to bring home both baserunners and tie the game. Pohlmeier didn’t even wait for anybody to drive him home with the winning run, as he stole third, then scored the winning run when the throw went into the outfield.

It was the second comeback of the day for the Swifts, who recovered from a game one loss Friday to tie the series that day. Nazareth trailed 9-3 heading into the bottom of the sixth but scored eight runs to take the lead.

“It’s just the resiliency of these kids,” Nazareth coach Tyler Goodwin said. “It’s hard to put it into words how fun it is to be around kids who don’t quit, because that’s so easy in today’s society. It’s just not part of what we do.”

That was best exemplified in the sixth, as the Swifts trailed by six with only six more outs for O’Donnell (15-6-1) to record before eliminating them.

Three of Nazareth’s first four batters in the sixth singled, but the big hit was a two-run double by Reid Backus which tied the game 9-9. A groundout and an error scored the final two runs of the inning, and the Swifts held an 11-9 lead.

“You’re down six runs like that you’ve got to fight,” Goodwin said. “You’ve just got to live in the moment. What a ride it’s been. Tonight it was never quit and I’m so proud to be their coach.”

But it still wasn’t over, as O’Donnell scored two runs on back-to-back singles with two outs in the seventh to tie it 11-11 and force extra innings. The Eagles mounted another two-out rally in the eighth, as a single and a hit batter brought in two runs to give them a 13-11 lead. All that did, though, was set the stage for Nazareth’s final dramatics.

Pohlmeier, who was the winning pitcher by throwing three innings of relief, drove in three runs and scored three runs. Guerrero and Breck Proctor also drove in two runs apiece.

The Swifts got into that position Saturday because they came back for a 10-6 win Friday in game two to even the series after a 4-1 loss in game one. Nazareth’s bats came alive from the start in the second game, as the Swifts took a 5-0 lead in the bottom of the first, scoring the first three runs on an error and a groundout before Neill capped the inning with an RBI double.

Nazareth led 10-3 heading into the seventh before O’Donnell scored three runs with two outs to keep the game alive, but it was too little, too late.

The Swifts opened the series in game run by scoring in the top of the first when Zane Schulte’s sacrifice fly drove in a run for a 1-0 lead. That was all they got off O’Donnell starter Willie Luera, thought, as he gave up only four hits.

Class 2A Division II

Gruver rallies for two wins over Albany in regional semifinals

Just because the Gruver Greyhounds suffered their first loss of the season didn’t mean they were going to let it ruin the rest of their season.

That’s the situation they found themselves in Friday after they were humiliated by Albany in the first game of a best-of-three region semifinal series in Elk City, Okla. However, the Greyhounds had won 19 straight games before that for a reason.

Friday evening, the Greyhounds tied the series in the second game by jumping out to a big early lead and rolling to an 8-2 victory, forcing a third and decisive game Saturday afternoon. Gruver was perhaps even more dominant, beating Albany 9-1 to win the series and advance to face Stamford next week in the region final at a date and location to be determined.

The victory came after Gruver (21-1) suffered its first loss of the season in game one, a 10-0 six-inning 10-run mercy rule loss in which the Greyhounds were no-hit. A week earlier, Gruver avoided facing a game three against Tahoka by rallying for six runs in the top of the seventh for a 7-6 victory to complete the series sweep.

“I think our kids really do handle adversity well,” Gruver coach Khris Kelp said. “That’s something that we talk about all the time. It’s fun to see them grow and embrace that challenge.”

Gruver’s perfect season ended in the most imperfect way possible in game one. Albany starter Chip Chambers struck out 12 in six innings, and the Greyhounds didn’t help themselves out at all in the field by committing seven errors behind pitchers Steven Cowan and Brock Butler, as all but two of Albany’s runs were unearned.

The Greyhounds showed why a series isn’t won after just one game, though.

 “We’ve preached all along it’s a series for a reason,” Kelp said. “You’ve got to win two. It obviously gives you some momentum going into Saturday’s game (to win Friday’s second game) but we’ve been preparing for game three of the playoffs since day one of baseball. We talk about how important it is to develop pitchers. You have to prepare for game three.”

The Greyhounds immediately outdid offensively what they did in game one when Briggs Satterfield opened the bottom of the first with a single. Satterfield, who would go on to be the winning pitcher, scored on Cowan’s single for a 1-0 lead and Cowan scored on an error to make it 2-0, as Gruver never trailed again.

Pake Babbs hit a two-run single in the third to expand Gruver’s lead to 4-0 and that was all the cushion Satterfield would need on the mound, as he gave up two runs, only one earned, in 6 2/3 innings. Cowan had three hits and scored three runs.

In game three, Gruver took a 2-0 lead in the top of the third on RBI groundouts by Satterfield and Cowan. That was enough support for starter Jett Pittman, who struck out nine, walked none and gave up only two hits for the win.

The Greyhounds were still clinging to a 3-1 lead after five, but scored three runs each in the sixth and seventh to put away the game. Butler capped the scoring with a two-run double in the seventh.

Butler, Satterfield and Cowan all drove in two runs in game three.

Class 5A Division I

Sandies fall in heartbreaker, rout in sweep by Aledo

The first two games couldn’t have been any different for the Amarillo High Sandies against Aledo in the region semifinals at Iowa Park.

Sadly for the Sandies, they still had the same results.

Thursday night, Amarillo High got involved in a pitchers’ duel for the ages in the first game of the best-of-three series. After six scoreless innings, the Sandies broke through for two unearned runs in the top of the seventh, but couldn’t make that lead hold up in a 3-2 loss.

Friday afternoon, Amarillo High never really got in the game, as Aledo scored four runs in the top of the first and never trailed in dealing the Sandies a 15-2 10-run mercy rule loss in five innings. Amarillo High ended the season 26-15-1.

The first game was about as tense as playoff baseball can get, as Amarillo High left-hander Clayton Norrell and Aledo’s Grayson McKelvey matched each other zero for zero for six innings. Norrell gave up a pair of singles in the bottom of the third but was outdone by McKelvey, who left after throwing six innings of no-hit ball.

Aledo reliever Ethan Hodo started the seventh by retiring the first two Amarillo High batters, but Jimmy Escajeda reached on an error to give the Sandies some life. 

Gabe Ortiz then got Amarillo High’s first hit of the game with a single, and Tate Blackwell followed with an RBI single to get the Sandies on the board. Ortiz then stole home on a double steal to give Amarillo High a 2-0 lead.

Norrell gave up a double to Brennan Evans to start the bottom of the seventh, and with one out Luke Gladchuk walked to put the tying run on base. At that point, Norrell reached the UIL-mandated 110-pitch limit and was relieved by freshman right-hander Taegan Tate.

Blake Burdine then singled to load the bases and Landon Barnes grounded out to first to bring home a run and cut the lead to 2-1. Two pitches later Lucas Nowracki singled to bring home two runs and give the Bearcats (29-7) the win.

Aledo carried over the positive momentum and the Sandies the negative momentum into the second game. Tate started on the mound for Amarillo High and gave up two-run home runs to Barnes and Dylan Duran as the Bearcats took a 4-0 lead. 

Amarillo High’s Mello Castillo hit a solo homer to lead off the bottom of the first and cut the lead to 4-1, but that was as close as the Sandies got. In the top of the second, Barnes hit a two-run triple and Aledo led 7-1 by the end of the inning, and Tate was finished for the day.

Aledo put the game away with seven runs in the top of the fifth, as Noah Graham capped the inning with a grand slam which gave the Bearcats the run-rule margin.

Class 4A Division I

West Plains falls late in one-gamer to Mineral Wells

Whatever good fortune had been working for the West Plains Wolves all season was seriously dented this past week.

Forced to a one-game playoff with Mineral Wells at Colorado City after losing a coin flip, West Plains had little margin for error with the season riding on only seven innings. Despite another stellar pitching outing by Reid Macon, the Wolves had trouble hitting the ball too, as a late Mineral Wells homer sank West Plains 3-1, as the Wolves ended their season with a 27-7-1 mark.

Mineral Wells (19-12-1) got to Macon for a run and a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first on an RBI groundout. That was all the Rams could get off Macon for the next four innings.

The Wolves got their only run against Mineral Wells starter Holden Hering in the top of the fifth when Jesse Flores hit an RBI single to score Kaden Hooker and tie the game 1-1. 

Hering only gave up four hits, but his biggest impact in the game came at the plate. After Macon issued a walk with one out in the bottom of the sixth, Hering homered to centerfield, one of only two hits for the Rams, who took a 3-1 lead.

In the seventh, William Hollifield retired the Wolves in order to earn the win and end their season.