Bibiana Tanori’s at-bat with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning after she struck out in her two previous times at the plate was the game Tuesday in microcosm for No. 4 Mica Mountain with visiting No. 5 Sahuarita.
The Thunderbolts fell behind by three runs in the top of the fifth inning against Sahuarita, which beat them last week on the very same field in the early rounds of the 4A state tournament.
Mica Mountain had runners on first and second base when Tanori came to the plate in the ninth. On a 2-1 count, Tanori lined a single to left field and Dezeree Lopez–Taylor ran home for the winning run.
The Thunderbolts wildly celebrated after the 4-3 victory in the 4A elimination-bracket final.
Their coach, Steve Garcia, ran toward the group in the outfield and exclaimed, “How does it feel?!”
Tanori provided an answer to how she felt when she came to the plate in the ninth.
“I had to mentally take a step back and then just kind of relax and breathe again,” Tanori said. “And then just continue what I’ve been working on and prepare myself from the previous at-bats. That’s what I was looking for from that pitch.”
BIBIANA TANORI WALK-OFF
RBI single to LF gives Mica Mountain a 4-3 win with two outs, B9. Thunderbolts advance to 4A semifinals vs. Salpointe on Friday at 5:30 pm at Amphi. https://t.co/YMkNPRIdPF pic.twitter.com/4WqqWOMCOP— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) May 14, 2025
When the ball dropped in left field and Tanori turned at first base to watch Suarez score, she said, “I was like, ‘Thank God, senior year, we’re moving on.’ That’s what I wanted.”
Mica Mountain (22-12) is in the same position it was last season heading into the 4A semifinals against Salpointe at Amphi on Thursday at 5:30 p.m.
The No. 2 Lancers (23-6-1) have emerged from the winner’s bracket heading into the matchup, which was an identical scenario as last season.
Salpointe lost the first game but responded with a victory in the second game against the Thunderbolts. The Lancers went on to win their sixth straight 4A title by beating CDO in the championship game.
“It never gets easy, but you learn to handle it a lot better,” Garcia said when asked if last year’s experience has any value come Thursday. “You learn to deal with the hard stuff a lot better. It never gets easier but we’ll get out there and give it our best shot.
“I mean, heck, they’ve won so many championships. It’s just a great opportunity to play those guys and have a shot at going to state.”
Mica Mountain coach Steve Garcia has led his team to its second consecutive 4A semifinal appearance in the program’s fourth year of competition. The Thunderbolts rallied from a 3-0 deficit to Sahuarita after the top of the fifth to win 4-3 in the bottom of the ninth in the… pic.twitter.com/dzLWv8ZpK8
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) May 14, 2025
When Sahuarita (25-7) built a 3-0 lead in the fifth inning, Mica Mountain ace Acelynn–Rose Heston realized it never gets easy, as Garcia mentioned, but she responded.
“I have to push through it,” Heston said. “I get these butterflies in my chest and I use them for me.”
Heston engaged in a pitcher’s duel throughout with another Class of 2026 standout — Sahuarita’s Jayd Villa.
A couple of walks, a hit by pitch and an error ignited Sahuarita’s three-run rally in the fifth inning. A week earlier, Sahuarita won 6-0 to send Mica Mountain to the elimination bracket.
“We already lost to them and it was a real hard game,” Heston said. “Just to come back and win and all of us to be mentally there, just stay in the game, it really helped us win.”
After the fifth inning, Heston retired 12 of the last 13 batters she faced.
Acelynn-Rose Heston battled back from a 3-0 deficit to be the winning pitcher, going the distance in a nine-inning game in Mica Mountain’s 4-3 win over Sahuarita in the 4A elimination-bracket final. She responded after a 6-0 loss to the Mustangs last week. She allowed three hits… pic.twitter.com/iuCy06IMuD
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) May 14, 2025
Mica Mountain answered Sahuarita’s scoring in the fifth with a run of its own in the bottom of the inning behind a walk and an error.
The score remained 3-1 in favor of the Mustangs until the bottom of the seventh, when Addison Rogers led off with a single for Mica Mountain. Lopez-Taylor followed with an RBI double that cut the lead to 3-2.
With one out, Violet Suarez hit a single, advancing Lopez-Taylor to third. Shaylee Fuell followed with a sacrifice fly to left field that scored Lopez-Taylor and tied the game at 3.
Lopez-Taylor hit a single to lead off the bottom of the ninth. After an out was recorded, Suarez’s sacrifice bunt moved Lopez-Taylor to second base. Sahuarita then intentionally walked Fuell.
Tanori followed with her walk-off single.
Bibiana Tanori is a senior who achieved a walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth in her last home game at Mica Mountain. The hit gave the Thunderbolts a 4-3 win over Sahuarita in the 4A elimination-bracket final. pic.twitter.com/JIHqR0FeFB
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) May 14, 2025
“I’m so happy for Bibi,” Garcia said. “She has had an up-and-down year. I knew we just needed to keep plugging along. What better way as a senior than to come through with that big hit?
“I’m so proud of her right now.”
Tanori is the older sister of Mike Tanori, a freshman with Mica Mountain’s baseball team, and Raelynn Tanori, a seventh grader who has held her own as a Rincon Little League baseball player. Raelynn has participated the last two years in the Trailblazer Series, MLB’s effort to diversify baseball for girls and women, providing an annual development experience held in Jackie Robinson’s honor.
The event is staged during the time of Robinson’s birthday on April 15 at the Jackie Robinson Training Complex in Vero Beach, Fla.
Bibiana Tanori will always be known as the hero who hit a walk-off single in the playoffs in her last at-bat at home.
“It means everything to me right now,” she said of her hit. “I love the girls. I love the team. I’m glad I got to have this opportunity with them.”
Heston allowed only three hits and three runs (none earned) with four strikeouts and four walks in her nine innings of work.
It’s on to Salpointe, which split its season series with Mica Mountain.
“We’re 1-1 right now; we’re tied up.” Heston said. “I think it will be a really good matchup, but I think we’ve got them.”
Heston and Bibiani Tanori each had two hits (Heston 2 for 4 and Tanori 2 for 5) while Lopez-Taylor went 3 for 4 with two runs and an RBI.
Callie Fox was 1 for 4 with two RBIs for Sahuarita.
Villa pitched admirably, going 8 2/3 innings and allowing nine hits with three earned runs. She struck out six and walked two.
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon. He became an educator in 2016 and is presently a special education teacher at Sunnyside High School in the Sunnyside Unified School District.
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