Shubert’s walk-off seals the deal in Wildcats win
A walk-off single led the Paloma Valley Wildcats past Great Oak 12-11 Wednesday, March 31, in their opening game of the Darryl Kile spring break tournament. The game was tied at 11 with Paloma Valley batting in the bottom of the seventh when Ryan Shubert singled on a 3-2 count, scoring the winning run.
Paloma Valley got on the board in the first inning when D.J. McEvers singled on a 1-0 count, scoring one run. Despite falling down by ten runs in the fourth inning, Great Oak fought back, utilizing almost their entire lineup. Paloma Valley countered by inserting sub after sub, but it would be the Wolfpack that would put the pressure on by scoring eight runs in the failed comeback.
Things got exciting for Great Oak with an onslaught of hits that came from players like Xavier Colon, Billy Meehan, Diego Hernandez, Dimitri Lingos, Jacob Kocaya and Shea Lake in the late innings, as well as a Wildcat error in the outfield that sent the game to the bottom of the seventh.
“Both teams definitely made it interesting,” says Jason Berni, Paloma Valley’s head coach. “We always love playing the Southwestern League teams, which is a place we feel we can compete if changes were ever to be made.”
Matt Gaunt was on the mound for Paloma Valley, lasting five innings, allowing eight hits and three runs while striking out seven and walking one. Riley Ricken led things off on the hill for Great Oak. The southpaw surrendered six runs on three hits over two-thirds of an inning. Nunez, Schooler, and Wauschek each contributed in relief for Great Oak.
Paloma Valley racked up 14 hits in the game with Shubert and Gaunt both managing multiple hits for the Wildcats. Shubert went 4-for-4 at the plate to lead the Wildcats in hits. Great Oak had 16 hits on the day.
*The Valley News Sports Department can be reached by email at sports@reedermedia.com. Photos and sports scores/stats/highlights can also be submitted to the same email address.
