LAKE ELSINORE – It’s an event that always has baseball fans on the edge of their seats, as the Southwestern League’s season culminated in a triple-header spectacle at The Diamond Stadium in Lake Elsinore Thursday, April 25. The league, known for its fiercely competitive spirit, did not disappoint as team’s gave their all in the final push towards the postseason.
The week was punctuated by not only the last games of the three-game series, but also by memorable Senior Day games that saw seasoned players shine. The anticipation was intense, with every play and every pitch adding to the drama that only baseball can provide.
A significant shift in the league standings saw Great Oak rise from the ashes of the bottom positions to vie for a possible postseason slot. Their early week victories against Murrieta Mesa were nothing short of dominating as they hoped to end the season with a series sweep. Temecula Valley locked up their second-place position and an auto bid for a playoff spot with two crucial wins against Murrieta Valley earlier in the week, and Chaparral’s auto bid was ripe for the picking, so long as they could defeat the Broncos in their final matchup.
Murrieta Valley managed a surprise victory against Temecula Valley with a score of 4-3 during their final game, stirring up the middle ranks and opening up discussions about playoff possibilities. The series reached an exhilarating conclusion at The Diamond Stadium with the game tied at 3-3 until the bottom of the fifth. That’s when the pendulum swung in Murrieta Valley’s favor thanks to an RBI single by Bear Bachmeier, which gave the Nighthawks the go-ahead run. Pitcher Easton Wagoner (six hits, one earned run over seven innings, four strikeouts and two walks) clinched the win for Murrieta Valley, showcasing an impressive performance that held the Golden Bears at bay. Eddie Lawler took the loss for Temecula Valley (9-6 in league).
Despite the loss, sophomore Taden Krogsgaard shone with two hits in three at-bats, and teammates Rocco Pugliese and Will Bandel contributed RBIs for the Golden Bears. Murrieta Valley’s Rain McMillan and Jesiah Generoso emerged as game-changers, driving in runs and pulling off an inside-the-park homerun (Generoso), adding excitement to an already tense matchup.
Time ran out in the fifth inning for Vista Murrieta (11-4 in league) as they fell to Chaparral (8-7 in league) due to the game’s drop dead time, which is one of the fallouts from playing the middle game of the triple header. Mikey Ong would lead the Pumas with his two hits, one of which garnished an RBI. Brady Pavlosky picked up the win with his five innings and five strikeouts from the bump.
Under the lights, the atmosphere had everything a fan would want in the final game of the triple header. Lot’s of chirping from every area of the stadium brought about an electric environment as lefty starter, Tanner Blackmon, kept Great Oak at bay with his six-inning two-hit assault on the Wolfpack lineup. The sophomore pitcher had five strikeouts and let up zero runs in Murrieta Mesa’s 4-0 victory. Senior centerfielder CJ Moran delivered a mighty blow in his third at bat to Great Oak’s starter, Reagan Ricken, which led to a four-run fifth inning after his 2 RBI single ignited the Rams.
Moran led Murrieta Mesa going 2 for 4 on the night. While the win was a great footnote to end the league season on, especially at Storm Stadium, the Rams 5-10 league record would not be enough to keep them out of last place. The loss for Great Oak tied them with Murrieta Valley at 6-9, but more than likely took the Wolfpack out of playoff contention due to falling to the Nighthawks in their season series, two games to one.
The Southwestern League’s unique structure offers automatic playoff bids to the top three teams, with a potential at-large bid for the fourth-place team – a much-discussed topic given the league’s competitive nature this season. Although, with every team holding a winning overall season record, a first in history for the SWL baseball teams, the possibility of post-season play for the teams in the bottom of the standings would not be out of the question.
The CIF-SS postseason brackets were released at www.cifss.org on Monday, April 29, at 10 am, and much like Oprah handing out free cars, almost every team from the Southwestern League was pushed through to the playoffs. The list included all but Great Oak, who finished ahead of last place Murrieta Mesa and finished tied with Murrieta Valley in the standings.
It all goes to show that you never know what is going to happen behind closed doors when rankings come in to play. Especially for a Rams team that will be representing in Division 5. Coming in last place and making the playoffs has to be another first in the Southwestern League, but scraping a few wins together against league opponents that are above you in the Divisional rankings definitely worked out well to Murrieta Mesa’s advantage.
A complete list of bracket dates and times can be found online by visiting www.cifss.org.
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Game photos from the entire day can be purchased by visiting www.timestoodstillphotography.com.
