Trailing nearly the entire game, Ramona High School catcher Colton Simpson said his team resorted to a Bulldog mentality.
It paid a huge dividend as the Bulldogs scored twice in the fifth inning and twice more in the top of the seventh for a come-from-behind 8-6 win over Otay Ranch to capture the CIF San Diego Section Division 4 baseball championship at USD’s Fowler Park.
Ramona (23-7), winners of 12 in a row and 19 of its last 21, advances to the Southern California Regionals with pairings to be announced Sunday afternoon.
Otay Ranch finishes 23-11.
Simpson was playing just his ninth game of the season after breaking his collarbone in a football drill.
“I was out two months, and I just got back two weeks ago,” said Simpson, who had four hits, drove in three and scored the go-ahead run in the seventh.
“I had to get back on the field, my boys. This is what it’s all about.”
Zack Nightingale reached base four times behind two singles, a walk and a hit batsman.
Tied at 6, he started the winning rally. He was thown out at the plate on a failed suicide squeeze. But he got things started.
“Winning it all was the goal all season,” Nightingale said. “We got down early, seemed like we were chasing the entire game. But it’s not in our nature to back down. We knew we could get the job done.”
Tallon Ogilvie followed Nightingale and Simpson with a single to load the bases in the seventh.
After a failed squeeze, Simpson scored on an error and Josh Luellen’s sacrifice fly scored Ogilvie.
Then it was up to left-hander Seth Gaines to close out Otay Ranch. He struck out the first batter, walked the next, then closed the game on a 6-4-3 double play.
“I thought it was my last game,” said Gaines, who worked the final two innings and got the win to run his record to 4-0. “I thought it was going to be over, but we’re going to keep going.
“We kind of just figured out that, like they got hits off righties, looking at the record, nothing off lefties. We put in lefties, dominated. Swung the sticks like we could. Top of the order took care of what we needed to do. And yeah, came out on top.
“I knew that if we get one run in the seventh, I can for sure come in, shut it down. Two was just insurance. And there’s no doubt in anyone’s mind that this game was ours.”
Melendez scored three runs for the Bulldogs and Ogilvie drove in two.
Carlos Martinez drove in two for Otay Ranch as did Dimas Acevedo.
This is Ramona’s first CIF baseball championship since going back-to-back in 1972-73.
“It’s the first time in 51 years Ramona has been here,” Bulldogs coach Chris Bertolero said. “That’s special, not just for this team, but for a whole town of Ramona. They loved us, they follow us, and it’s perfect.”
Otay Ranch left 10 runners on bases, including the bases loaded in the second and fourth innings.
UC beats Calexico for title
University City 12, Calexico 1: After a shaky first inning, left-hander AJ Curry settled in, the offense came to life and UC rolled to the Division 3 championship.
Curry, a junior who is committed to Tennessee, allowed a run in the first, then blanked Calexico over the next four innings.
Curry allowed three hits, walked five and struck out eight, giving him 102 strikeouts on the season in 57 innings in running his record to 7-4.
He also had a triple, single, walked and scored twice.
“My first inning was a little rocky,” Curry said. “I had to get settled in. A lot of adrenaline at the start of the game. My last four innings, I felt great. I had momentum. I just had to make my pitches. I know I’ve got a great defense behind me. They’re backing me up on every play.”
Ethan Antenore and Jaden Parker both drove in three runs with bases-loaded doubles.
University City (20-12) advances to the Southern California Regionals. Calexico finishes 23-5-1.
