KINGSVILLE — With the bases loaded, two outs and down by two runs in the ninth, Santa Gertrudis Academy’s Tony De La Cruz cleared the bases with a double to knock out the Lyford Bulldogs 6-5 in Game 2 of an area-round series Saturday.
“I will be honest with you, I told him to take some pitches,” Lions coach Frank Galvan Jr. said. “I told him to take that last one and he shook me off. He ended up with the walkoff. I want to give the glory to God. Our team thing is one team under God. My hat’s off to Lyford, that is a good group of kids over there.”
The Bulldogs started strong with a two-run first inning. The Lions responded with a two-run second.
The Lions broke the deadlock during the bottom of the third inning courtesy of Kayden McClure. Santa Gertrudis could have had more, but the runner on third was picked off.
Lyford tied the game in the fourth. Aiden Knies’ blooper down the third-base line forced the left fielder to gamble with a diving attempt. The outfielder could not come up with the catch, and the runner scored.
Santa Gertrudis threatened again in the fourth, but the Bulldogs picked off a runner at third again to end the inning. Lyford pitcher Ryan Rivera ripped a double to start the fifth but was left stranded on third with no outs.
No team could find the run needed to win the game in seven innings. In the eighth, both teams quickly took care of the other defensively to move into the ninth.
Lyford took the lead in the top half, as Rivera’s shot down the first-base line with runners on first and second was too much for the first baseman to handle.
The ball fell kindly for Lyford in the outfield, scoring Isais Gonzalez from second. Rivera was picked off at second, but Knies scored to give the Bulldogs a 5-3 lead.
“I think (Friday) came as a shock to us,” Lyford coach Jose Rocha said. “We rebounded in the best way possible. Sometimes the ball just does not bounce your way. We had a couple of calls go our way and a couple of calls not go our way. At the end of the day, that is baseball. It is a beautiful game but also a tragic game.”
Lyford ends the season as the District 31-3A champion and a bi-district winner.
“These seniors gave everything they had,” Rocha said. “I cannot express how proud I am of Diego Guerra and Ryan Rivera. The past four years, they poured nothing but their hearts and souls into this program. They are the best examples of leaders that I can think of.”
