1A State Semi Finals Game 2

D’Hanis versus Abbott

The sun was definitely more intense than at the start of game 1.  Time would tell if the game was equally as intense.  The battery for the home team D’Hanis Cowboys consisted of Daelyn Gonzales on the mound and Ethan Reyes behind the plate.  The Abbott Panthers would throw Kyle Gerik with Will Kazda receiving pitches.

Daelyn Gonzales would record two quick outs on a lineout to first baseman AJ Bridges and a comebacker for a 1-3 putout before Will Kazda would record the first hit of the game.  Another week ground ball to the pitcher would put the Cowboys in the dugout.  Abbott would not have as clean of an inning.  A leadoff walk followed by Luke Landfeld stealing second quickly put a runner in scoring position.  An error put runners at the corners.  Ethan Reyes would single for the Cowboys to drive in Landfeld.  Gerik would get a strikeout followed by batters interference to catch a break and garner 2 outs.  An error by shortstop, Riley Sustala would score Harrmann from 3^rd.  A wild pitch put Will Schawe at 2^nd.  Daelyn Gonzales would help his cause with a single to right and score Schawe from second.  JJ Garcia would walk before Abbott finally gets out of the inning with a ground out to Riley Sustala at short.

A strikeout looking would start of the top of the 2^nd for Cowboy Pitcher Daelyn Gonzalez.  Gonzalez would walk Brady Schulz before striking out the next two Panthers.  The Cowboys would leadoff the bottom of the second with a Eusebio Tapia single up the middle.  Landfeld would be hit by a pitch.   With 1 out, Ethan Reyes one hops the left field fence.  The Cowboys would only score one as it was ruled a ground rule double.  With two outs, what appeared to be a routine ground ball takes a ridiculous bounce over Karsyn Johnson’s head at second and the Cowboys score two as a result.   At the end of the second it was 6-0 in favor of D’Hanis.

Gonzalez would record his 4^th strikeout of the game with the first out in the third.  A ground out to second gave the Cowboys their 2^nd out.  The highlight real play of the game so far was the third out as JJ Garcia perfectly timed a lead to rob Karsyn Johnson of a single.  Garcia would strikeout to start of the bottom of the 3^rd with Raine Redden reaching on an error by the Panthers shortstop, Riley Sustela.  He would advance to second on a wild pitch.  Gerik would get his third strikeout.  An attempted pickoff to second would advance Redden to third as no one was there to receive the throw.  Luke Langford would single up the middle and drive him in.  A last fly ball to right would end the inning.

Abbott would try and get some offense going in the top of the 4^th.  Will Kazda led off with a walk.  He would advance to second on a bad pickoff attempt.  Preston Putejovsky moved him over to third but was out at first.  Cowboy pitcher Daelyn Gonzales would then get Kyle Gerik to go down swinging but walk Brady Schulz for the second time in the game to put runners at the corners.  Schulz would advance to second on defensive indifference but that’s where any threat ended as a strikeout ends the inning.

Preston Pustejovsky would take the mound for the Panthers in the bottom of the fourth.  With his 3^rd hit of the day, Ethan Reyes starts the bottom of the 4^th off with a single.  Ryan Hendry would duplicate the efforts.  Will Schawe would hammer a ball up the middle for the third single in a row.  Centerfielder Mason Hejl would gun down Reyes at the plate trying to score for the first out.  Abbott would load the bases with an intentional walk.  A sacrifice fly by JJ Garcia scores Hendry.  Raine Redden hit a ball to left and miscommunication by the Panther outfield resulted in a double and two runs scoring.  An infield single scores on more for the Cowboys forcing another pitching change.

Still in the bottom of the 4^th.  Abbott takes another bad bounce at short allowing the 12^th run of the day to score.  With bases loaded an error by the second baseman allows 2 to score and puts the score at 14-0 Cowboys. D’Hanis would score 2 more before Abbott could get out of the inning.  At the end of the 4^th, it was 16-0 D’Hanis.

Needing just 3 outs to advance to the State Championship game, Gonzales would strikeout the first batter before giving up just his second hit of the game to Mason Hejl.  It would quickly be erased as Hekl was thrown out trying to steal.  A pop fly ends the game.

WP – Gonzales
LP –  Gerik

Player of the Game: Daelyn Gonzales