Bulldogs pound Austin Westlake, 11-3, to earn championship berth

By LONNIE KING

© 2009 Houston5ABaseball.com

Before their state semifinal game got underway at Dell Diamond on Friday, the players and fans from El Paso Socorro who traveled to Round Rock gave every indication that they were excited to be there and anxious to show off their team. Because the semifinal matchup before the Bulldogs' game with Austin Westlake between Lufkin and Pearland went 11 innings, they had to wait an extra hour to start the show.

Once Socorro did get onto the field, they wasted no time in proving that they were no fluke. The Bulldogs jumped out to an early lead, weathered a rocky inning on defense and then unleashed a barrage of hits and runs that propelled them to an 11-3 victory and the UIL Class 5A state championship game against the Lufkin Panthers on Saturday.

Socorro wasted little time in taking charge. The first batter of the game, designated hitter George Stoltz tripled and scored on a sacrifice fly by Aaron Olivas. Stoltz then drove in a run with a sacrifice fly of his own in the second inning. Olivas collected his second RBI of the game with a single and Socorro led 3-0 after two innings.

Westlake capitalized on a pair of Socorro errors to tie the game in the third inning. A walk, single and an error loaded the bases for the Chaparrals with one out. Joseph Trahan delivered an RBI single and an error on Socorro centerfielder Cory Falvey on the play brought home the second run. An RBI ground out by Collin Shaw tied the game at 3-3.

But Socorro would answer in the bottom half of the fourth with two decisive swings.

With two runners on base, Falvey drilled the first pitch from Westlake starter James Ferguson over the left field wall for a three-run home run. Falvey now has 17 home runs on the season. Pitcher Bobby Mares followed with a solo home run to give the Bulldogs a 7-3 lead. Ivan Sigala's RBI single made it 8-3 after four innings.

The Socorro offense added some insurance in the sixth with three more runs off of Chaparral reliever Holt McNair.

Mares (11-1) worked efficiently in the seventh, getting a ground out and fly out before striking out Chandler Geller to end the game and set off a celebration by the Socorro players and fans.

Socorro, playing in their first state tournament, became the first El Paso-area team to play in the state tournament since El Paso Riverside was a Class 4A semifinalist in 2000. They are the first El Paso team to win a state tournament game since El Paso Bowie defeated Austin High, 3-2, in 1949. Bowie was the 1949 state champion.

The 2009 Bulldogs (34-4) will now face Lufkin at noon on Saturday for the Class 5A championship. Westlake finishes the year with a record of 26-13.