Brownsville outlasts Marion in win

Brownsville, TX 9  Marion, IL 6

South Zone Champion Brownsville, Texas outlasted a tenacious Host Marion, Illinois team 9-6 to pick up a valuable win in each team’s first game at the 2018 Colt World Series. Brownsville led 6-1 after two innings. Then Marion cut the deficit to as close as 7-4, before Brownsville pulled away late in the game to pick up the victory.

Brownsville got on the scoreboard first in the bottom of the first inning. A single, a Marion error and another single loaded the bases, setting the table for Heriberto Maldonado to bring them all home with a three-RBI triple to right field. Jose Banda singled home Maldonado on the next at-bat, giving the South Zone Champions a 4-0 lead early.

A theme for the game was Marion’s relentlessness. It began in the top of the second, when, with Michael Dyer on first, Ryan Trokey hit a shot to right field that was misplayed by Brownsville’s right fielder. The error allowed Dyer to come all the way around to score on a close play at the plate that was dropped by the Brownsville catcher.

Texas continued to take it to Marion offensively in the bottom of the second. A hit batsman and a walk put two runners aboard for Herbierto Eduardo Garza to cash Darren Ramirez in from second base (5-1). During Heriberto Emanuel Garza’s at-bat, Rafael Capistran scored on a passed ball, giving Brownsville its largest lead of the game. 

A theme for the game was Marion’s relentlessness, as the team heated never surrendered. With two outs and the bases loaded in the top of the third, Dyer was hit by a pitch and Riley Coffer walked to cut the lead to 6-3. Though, a bases-loaded strikeout ended what could’ve been a big inning for the Host. Marion continued to battle in the top of the fourth when Justin Massingale recorded an RBI groundout that scored Felix Cross (6-4).

Darren Ramirez tripled for Brownsville in the bottom of the fourth, scoring Capistran and giving the Texans a more comfortable lead (7-4). 

Marion missed out on a golden opportunity in the top of the sixth. With no outs, Riley Coffer scored on an error by the Brownsville catcher, as Trokey moved to third base (7-5). Felix Cross hit into a fielder’s choice for an out, before pinch hitter Lucas Johnson walked. Massingale then hit a sharp ground ball to the shortstop, who tagged second base, before colliding with Griffin. The umpires determined Griffin interfered with the play, costing no only Massingale to be out at first, but it brought back Trokey to third and Cross to second. A strikeout ended the inning for Marion.

Brownsville capitalized on the mistake, and with the game’s momentum, the squad scored two more runs in the bottom of the sixth. Darren Ramirez and Maldonado hit RBI singles in the inning to give Brownsville insurance runs (9-5). In the top of the seventh, Marion was able to get a run back thanks to a sacrifice fly by Coffer that scored Parker Holland, but the deficit was too much for the Host team to overcome.

Heriberto Eduardo Garza paced Brownsville with three hits, while Maldonado’s four RBI led the team. Thanks in part to three walks, Capistran led the team with three runs scored. Marion only recorded three hits on the evening, highlighted by Kanen Dilday’s double. Coffer was the Marion RBI leader with two.

Following the victory, Seoul advances to Game #8 to take on West Zone Champion and 2017 DICK’S Sporting Goods Pony World Series Champion Covina, California tomorrow at 6 p.m. CT/US. Meanwhile, the loss drops Greensboro into the loser’s bracket. North Carolina will face the loser of Game #4 between Southern Illinois and Mazatlán, Sinaloa, Mexico in Game #6 11:30 a.m. tomorrow.

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