Panola drops
final game of Crowder series
Longview News Journal
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
CARTHAGE — A 9-2 lead through four innings had Panola well on its way to a four-game, three-day baseball sweep of Crowder College on Monday afternoon at Jim Reeves Memorial Park.
But a two-out rally in the fifth got Crowder back in the game, and the Roughriders' bats woke up again in the top of the ninth for another rally as Crowder prevented the Ponies from finishing off the sweep with a 13-12 victory.
Crowder staged a six-run, two-out rally in the top of the fifth to cut Panola's lead to 9-8, but Panola's Jared Wondra hit a two-run homerun in the bottom of the seventh to give the Ponies some breathing room and an 11-8 lead.
But Crowder wouldn't go away. With one out and the bases loaded in the top of the ninth, Kevin Denis-Fortier smacked a two-run single into right field, prompting Panola to insert Taylor Davis on the mound. Davis struck out Matthew Valleres to put the Roughriders' backs against the wall, but leadoff hitter Matty Johnson blooped a double into shallow center field, scoring Will McGinnis and Denis-Fortier to give Crowder a 12-11 advantage.
C.J. Matthews followed with an RBI single as the Roughriders' five-run ninth gave them a two-run edge going to the bottom half of the inning.
Panola's Ricky Gardner hit a one-out single to right field in the Pony ninth, and Wondra was hit by a pitch to put two men on with Dustin McCandless, Panola's second-spot hitter, at the plate. McCandless, though, popped out in foul territory. With two out, Davis, who hit a mammoth homer in Sunday afternoon's 14-4 Panola win, hit a grounder to short, but the throw to first went high into the dugout, scoring Gardner and putting Wondra and Davis at second and third.
But Panola would strand them as Crowder's Zac Ray struck out cleanup hitter Miguel Alicea to end the game.
Clayton McMillan started the game for Panola, pitching 4 2/3 innings. McMillan struck out nine batters, including a span where he whiffed six of seven, and walked two. McMillan yielded six runs, but only two of those were earned.
Fellow Carthage grad Kory Cleveland relieved McMillan, going 3 2/3 innings and giving up six runs, but, like McMillan, only two were earned. Cleveland struck out three and walked two. Davis got the loss in his two-third innings of work.
Wondra led Panola from the plate, going 3-for-5 with a homer, a double, three RBIs and two runs scored. Davis was 3-for-5 with a double, two RBIs and two runs, while Victor Luque, who committed three errors at second base, was 2-for-2 with two doubles, two RBIs and a sacrifice fly. Cody Deitz had a two-run single, while Alicea was 1-for-4 with a two-run double and two walks.
Panola plays at Baton Rouge Community College on Wednesday before traveling to Okaloosa-Walton (Fla.) Community College for a three-game set this weekend. The Ponies don't play at home again until March 5 against Tyler Junior College.
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