Beyer falls to Tracy again in baseball playoffs

For the third time in the last three years, Beyer High School lost to Tracy in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division I South baseball tournament, this time 11-5 on Monday afternoon at Pacific’s Klein Family Field.

If the Patriots (22-5) are to win their first South title since 2000, they’ll have to go through the losers’ bracket. They’ll play Tuesday at 4 p.m. against the loser of the late game between Bear Creek and St. Mary’s.

But Beyer coach Dom Duran said that of the four teams he’s had in his tenure, this club is best equipped to stay alive.

“If any group can, this group can,” said Duran, who has led Beyer to postseason appearances in each of his four seasons at the helm. “Of any team in the last four years, this is the one I’d want climbing back through the losers’ bracket.”

The Patriots, wearing white pants and bright red jerseys with dark blue sleeves, looked shaky from the outset, when the Bulldogs (23-7) jumped out to a 3-0 first-inning cushion.

Lee Brewer led off with a double to left, then scored on John Alvarado’s single just over the glove of pitcher Kevin Duffy, who retired the next two hitters before Kevin Saenz reached on an error. The Bulldogs capitalized on the miscue when Garrett Cichella doubled past a diving Ryan Frakes at third to drive in Alvarado and Cichella.

“I just didn’t feel it today,” said Duffy, who struck out 12 and was dominant in a 9-1 first-round victory over McNair on Wednesday. “Honestly, we were flat. We didn’t have the same intensity that we’ve had coming into games like this.”

The Patriots scored a run in the first when Jordan Walls singled with two outs and came home on Jack Large’s double.

But Tracy got the run back in the second. After Duffy quickly retired the first two hitters, Brewer worked a walk after falling behind 0-2, stole second and third and came home when the throw to third bounced into left field.

“Mistakes,” shortstop Chris Alonzo said when asked what was the difference Monday. “We gave up a lot of extra bases, unnecessarily. A lot of little things … that shouldn’t have happened.”

Beyer trimmed the deficit to 3-2 when Alonzo led off the third with a single up the middle, moved to second on a poor return throw by the center fielder, moved to third on a groundout by Trevor Ravelli and scored on a wild pitch.

But the Bulldogs broke it open in the fourth.

After Cichella walked and Cameron Hoff was hit by a pitch, Duran replaced Duffy with Josh Escobar. The junior right-hander induced a fly out to left against the first hitter, but Christian Rosetti’s fly ball to left was deep enough to score Cichella and advance Hoff, who scored on a passed ball with Brewer at the plate. Two pitches later, the Tracy leadoff hitter blasted a fastball over the wall in left to make it 7-2.

The Patriots had one more charge.

Tyler Orique led off the fifth with a single and Alonzo was hit by a pitch. After Ravelli popped out, Walls stroked a double to left-center that scored Orique. Large was intentionally walked to load the bases for Frakes, who singled under the glove of second baseman Thomas Greely to drive in Alonzo and Walls. Large was thrown out at third for the second out of the inning and Matt Williams popped up to end the inning.

But Beyer couldn’t keep it close.

Hoff singled to lead off the Tracy sixth, moved to third on Robert Garcia’s single and came home on Rosetti’s single that made it 8-5. After Brewer walked to load the bases, Alvarado lofted a fly to center that drove in Garcia, and Greely singled in two runs to make it 11-5.

“This team hasn’t had to play with its back against the wall all season,” said Duran, whose team rolled through the Modesto Metro Conference season with a 17-1 mark. “I’m curious to see how we respond. It could be fun.”

This story was originally published May 23, 2016 at 7:45 PM with the headline "Beyer falls to Tracy again in baseball playoffs."