In an instant classic that went into 10 innings, clutch hits by Nick Fell and Aidan Mandel broke open a tie game and secured San Marcos’ first Channel League baseball championship since 1996 with a 10-7 victory over rival Dos Pueblos in the regular-season finale on Friday afternoon at Scott O’Leary Field.
With the bases loaded in the top of the 10th, Fell launched a pitch down the left-field line just inches short of the wall and scored Nathaniel Lynk and Aiden Johnson to break a 7-7 tie.
“I was pretty nervous,” Fell said. “I knew that if Henry (Manfredonia) got a pitch, he was gonna do it, but he didn’t, so I had to do it.”
Mandel followed with a line drive single to right field, scoring Manfredonia for a 10-7 lead.
Mandel, pitching his fourth inning of relief, and the Royals’ defense retired three DP batters in a row, and San Marcos celebrated winning the title in the winner-take-all battle.
Mandel tallied seven strikeouts and was a difference-maker for the Royals down the stretch.
“Aidan Mandel kept us in the game,” said Fell, who started the game on the mound and was relieved by Mandel. “I’m so thankful that he picked me up on the mound and then I helped him out at the end.”
San Marcos jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning against DP ace Ryan Speshyock, when Manfredonia belted a two-run home run over the left field fence.
“Getting out to a lead is probably the most important thing in the game, so giving our team that energy was amazing,” Manfredonia said.
A few mistakes in the field cost the Chargers early on. A throwing error on a double-play attempt allowed Lance Bermudes to score, extending the Royals’ lead to 3-0.
The third inning was all Chargers as they scored five runs. Ethan Rodriguez hit an RBI single down the left-field line, scoring Greg Marmo. Rodriguez went on to score when Jackson Greaney singled into center field two batters later. A RBI single by Josh Brennan brought Greaney home, and after a wild pitch, a Speshyock hit scored Kellan Montgomery and Brennan, giving Dos Pueblos a 5-3 lead.
San Marcos struck back in the fifth inning as Fell hit an RBI single to center, narrowing the Chargers’ lead to 5-4. Two batters later, the Royals regained the lead when Emmett Speake hit a double down the right-field line to drive in Manfredonia and Chris Neal.
Leading 6-5 in the top of the fifth, Bermudes hit a high fly ball that the outfielder lost in the sun. Brennan scored on the play for a 7-5 lead.
The Chargers fought back as Rodriguez ripped a RBI triple over the center fielder’s head. Dylon Bailey followed with a hit to the third baseman and the fielder made a good play to first, but Bailey beat the throw and Rodriguez scored to tie the score at 7-7.
The score remained tied until the bottom of the 10th, when Fell came through with the hit that proved to be the game-winner.
“We haven’t won Channel League since 1996, and that was the year I was born,” Royals coach Wesley Ghan-Gibson said. “Today, they (the players) get to say they’re champions, and I’m so proud of them. It’s because of their hard work every single day and their love for the game.”
Ghan-Gibson had nothing but praise for Dos Pueblos, which forced the winner-take-all game with a comeback win at San Marcos on Wednesday,
“They fought until the last out, and I have so much respect for them and Coach Hedricks and his staff,” Ghan-Gibson said. “It was an absolute shame someone had to lose that game.”
Hedricks said the game got away from the Chargers.
“Congrats to San Marcos; it’s been a back-and-forth series,” he said. “We came into the game tied 2-and-2 with them and, unfortunately, this game got away from us a little bit.
“I was proud of our guys for fighting back. We had opportunities to win it, but credit to them for doing their job there and getting a few runs late in the game.”
The teams will learn their CIF playoff draws on Sunday. San Marcos is in Division 5 and Dos Pueblos in Division 3.