By ALBERT VILLEGAS
Special to the NEWS
The San Benito Greyhound Varsity Baseball Team fought tooth and nail during its bi-district series against the Edinburg Economedes Jaguars last week only to fall after taking the series to its full tilt.
The Class 6A best-of-three series went the distance as SBHS made the most of its lone home appearance in Game 2, Friday.
The ‘Hounds had a three-run sixth inning after trailing 3-1 in the game.
With one out, the ‘Hounds’ bats awoke as sophomore Joshua Baez and junior Joziah Davis each got on base with hits.
Senior Ethan Garza then smacked a right field single to score Baez. Senior Tony Garcia followed with a fielder’s choice, scoring Davis from third.
Working with a 3-3 tie, senior Victor Rodriguez also came through with an RBI single into the middle part of the outfield.
In the bottom half of the seventh, the Jaguars had on runner on first, but SBHS pitcher Baez and his teammates got the final two outs to close out the win. Baez pitched a complete game, earning two strikeouts, three walks, and seven hits.
What made this game more impressive was that SBHS was able to come back from a 14-7 loss in Game 1 the night before in Edinburg. The ‘Hounds led after four innings by a 7-3 score. Economedes roared back in the fifth with 11 runs, extending a lead the squad never relinquished.
In that game, Baez led all SBHS batters as he went 3-for-4 at the plate and scored a run. Freshman Josh Cabada (2-for-4) had an RBI.
Among the other ‘Hounds to score at least one run were Davis, Garcia, Rodriguez, freshman Joaquin Tovias, and senior Aiden Barrera (2).
Unfortunately, SBHS Head Coach Ramiro Partida, Jr. and his team, fell 5-1 in Game 3 back at Economedes High School the following day.
The ‘Hounds earned six hits, with Davis (2) leading the pack. Freshman Mason Garcia scored the lone SBHS run off a Garza hit.
Coach Partida applauded the Economedes players’ efforts, but was particularly proud of the effort his ‘Hounds demonstrated in forcing the series to go full tilt.
The last order of baseball business is choosing the district’s top players.
Coach Partida said his colleagues from Los Fresnos, Harlingen, and the Brownsville schools (Veterans Memorial and Hanna) are meeting on May 20 to finalize the All-District team.
SBHS ended its season with a 10-16 record. Economedes improved to 18-17, and advanced to the Area round to take on Buda Johnson (24-8-2).