BROWNSVILLE — Brownsville Lopez’s bats went off in the fifth, the defense picked up some brilliant outs and Jenny Shank had a strong outing in the circle to level the series against Corpus Christi Veterans Memorial with 7-5 victory Friday night in Brownsville.
The Lobos dropped the first game 7-4 in Corpus Christi where they will play Game 3 at 1 p.m. Saturday at Cabaniss.
“They were determined,” Brownsville Lopez head coach Jesse Martinez said. “They left Corpus Christi determined to win this game. They had a look in their face yesterday, they knew what the opponent was and they knew they could have won that game yesterday.”
The Eagles did not go back home quietly after going down 7-0.
Their sense of urgency was apparent as they scored two runs in the sixth and then put up three in the seventh and could have scored more but freshman third baseman Alyssa Lezama played spoiler.
Lezama placed her glove on Eagles junior Jada Zepeda as she tried to hold up at third after a big hit on one out.
“It was a good tag, close play and we got the call,” Martinez said.
Zepeda overran it ever so slightly with Lezama’s glove still on her for the second out. The next batter hit to shortstop Alma Lezama for the routine throw out, but first baseman Fernanda Pulido had to slightly stretch to end the game.
The Lobos finally made decisive contact in the fifth inning after hitting some decent shots throughout the game. Brownsville Lopez was patient, waiting for their pitch and when they did, they found the holes.
“Our bats were hot today,” Martinez said. “We knew we could hit their pitchers.”
Lopez designated hitter Larissa Olguin started things off in the inning with a single, AJ Garcia walked and then Charlene Granado drove in a run, Garcia scored. Shank drove in a run, Alma Lezama doubled, Alyssa hit a sac fly, Pulido hit a RBI double and Adanaris Tovar drove in a run to make it 7-0 when the dust settled.
“Whenever we start a rally everybody is alive and we are just rolling,” Granado said.
Granado scored in the bottom of the third to make it 1-0 after a terrific at bat and base running.
In the top half of the fifth it was Alyssa Lezama making a savvy play with the bases loaded and no outs. Lezama fielded a hard hit ball, tagged the base and then threw out the lead runner at the plate to ensure the Lobos held their 1-0 lead at the time.
Martinez said it was a crucial play and could have been a triple play while Shank said she was grateful for her defense.
“I am proud of Alyssa and AJ they showed out for us.” Shank said.
Shank said it was not her best night pitching and her defense backed up her on everything.
Shank pitched smart though against the Eagles and was great at pitching around some of their best hitters that went deep against Shank in Game 1. Shank said she let her defense do the work.
“The girls see the light and think they are going to go for it,” Martinez said. “They have good pitchers, we have a good hitting squad and I think we are going to hit the ball tomorrow, they are going to hit the ball tomorrow. It is going to be a slugfest. Let’s see who remains standing.”
Valley roundup
La Joya High took care of business in San Antonio and are one of the first Valley teams to book a spot in the third round with a 2-0 victory over San Antonio Harlan.
Weslaco High also leveled the series after beating San Antonio Holmes 15-5 in Zapata. Sharyland Pioneer also tied the series with La Joya Palmview by winning 3-1 in eight innings and Harlingen South opened the series against Victoria East with a 6-3 victory in San Diego.
Lyford also picked up a spot in the third round with another close victory against Hebbronville. Lyord’s ReAnn Rivera was the hero this team with a game-winning RBI in the 8th inning to help the Bulldogs to an area title.
Lyford faces Corpus Christi London in the third round. Rio Hondo was eliminated after another close loss to San Diego, losing 5-2.
