photo;Byers/H5AB "WE ARE THERE"

Friday, June 12
Dejesus' extra-inning blast sends Lufkin past Pearland

Louis DeJesus cracks an 11th inning walk-off HR for Lufkin: photo;Byers/H5AB

Dejesus' extra-inning blast sends Lufkin past Pearland
Panthers outlast Oilers in marathon battle to advance to Class 5A championship game

By LONNIE KING
© 2009, Houston5ABaseball.com

The Pearland Oilers became giant run-producers during their Region III playoff run that carried them to the UIL Class 5A state baseball tournament. Unfortunately for them, their state semifinal opponent, the Lufkin Panthers, became giant killers during their playoff run. Lufkin defeated Pearland, 4-2, in a classic 11-inning game at Dell Diamond on Friday in the Class 5A state semifinal. In the end the giant killers delivered a final blow one more time.

With a runner on and no one out in the bottom of the eleventh inning, Luis Dejesus drilled a two-run walk-off home run to the left field berm to send Lufkin to the state championship game on Saturday.

The loss brought an end to an impressive run by Pearland. In ten previous Region III playoff games this season, the Oilers had averaged 10.4 runs per game. But they were unable to capitalize on multiple scoring opportunities against the Panthers. The Oilers left 15 men on base in the game, eight of those in scoring position.

Afterward, Pearland head coach Ben Pardo saw that inability to get a key hit as the biggest factor in his team's loss.

"We had chances to score runs," said Pardo. "We just came up a little short at the end. We had our chances and couldn't get it done."

Those missed opportunities overshadowed some superior individual performances in the game by Pearland.

Starting pitcher Matt Rhodes, who threw a six-hit shutout against Brazoswood in the Region III championship series, delivered a solid performance, working seven innings and allowed two unearned runs on three hits. He struck out one batter and walked none.

Lufkin's only runs prior to the Dejesus' home run came in the third inning thanks, in part, to help from two Pearland errors. A throwing error by Kevin Miller at shortstop and a fielding error by Seth Dornak at first base made both runs unearned. But Rhodes would shut down the Lufkin offense from that point.

"Rhodes just keeps surprising you, stated Pardo. "(He gave up) two unearned runs and he keeps throwing-I mean, for six innings, he just keeps them at bay the whole time."

In his last two outings of the season, Rhodes pitched 14 innings without allowing an earned run and gave up nine hits.

The Pearland defense would also rebound from the third inning. The Oilers came up with several stellar defensive plays that held the Panthers in check, including a catch in center by Corbin Smith and a couple of plays by Miller at shortstop. But the defensive play of the game came from left fielder Stephen Shorkey in extra innings.

With Miller pitching his second inning in relief of Rhodes in the bottom of the ninth, Lufkin got a one-out double from Zach Marberry. Ryan Nicholas followed with a single to left field and Paul Porter, running at second for Marberry, was waved home from third by Lufkin head coach Clay Berry. Shorkey charged the hit and delivered a strike to the plate. Catcher Kelly Cross took the throw as Porter arrived at the plate and held on for the second out of the inning as the two collided. Miller got Colton Wynne to foul out to end the inning.

"Shorkey comes up firing and keeps us in the game for another couple of innings," said Pardo after the game. "That's what (our defense) has been doing all year. They keep giving us opportunities to win and they gave us opportunities to win today."

Still, Pearland's offense would not be able to get the clutch hit they needed. The Oilers left two runners on in the tenth and left the bases loaded in the eleventh to set up Dejesus' walk-off blast.

Miller left a changeup up in the strike zone a little too much and Dejesus hit it 380 feet.

"You're waiting for team to make the fewest mistakes and we made one more too many than they did," Pardo said, in reflecting on his 2009 team's final game. "That's just the game, and you've got to take the good with the bad."

"Today we hit the ball well. We were still able to spray nine hits," he said. "It's just that, at the time when we needed the hits, we didn't get them."

"Baseball's a game of timely hitting," Pardo continued. "If we get a couple of timely hits, we're the ones celebrating right now."

Pardo then moved away from the game and discussed his team's run through the Region III playoffs.

"It was an impressive run. We went 9-1 and we did it in style," he said. "Offensively, we were putting runs up all over the place."

"It's been a great season," said the coach. "In the beginning, there were a lot of question marks. Those question marks answered themselves as the season progressed. We got production out of everybody and it turned out to be one of the greatest seasons in Pearland history."

The Oilers finish their season with a record of 30-8-1. Lufkin (30-9) moves on to face the winner of the El Paso Socorro-Austin Westlake semifinal.