Longtime local sports journalist Brad Allis provided this report of Flowing Wells and Sunnyside in the Junior State Baseball Tournament. Allis is the host of the Wildcat Sports Report podcast and is the Senior Communications Specialist for Pima Association of Governments. His son Tyler plays for Flowing Wells. Brad has been the president of the Flowing Wells-Amphi Little League Board.
PAYSON – The chants of “Tucson, Tucson” started moments after Flowing Wells held off a late rally and beat Cactus Foothills 4-3 Saturday night at Rumsey Park.
Less than 10 minutes before, Sunnyside clinched its place in the championship of the Arizona Junior Baseball All-Star tournament with an 8-4 win over Litchfield Park.
Two of the final three teams in the tournament are from the Old Pueblo.
Flowing Wells got a manner of revenge against Cactus Foothills, which eliminated them the year before. Six players return from that Flowing Wells squad, while three players from Cactus Foothills played for its team a season ago.
Flowing Wells had to hold on to earn the win over Cactus Foothills. Down 4-2, Cactus Foothills used a single, walk and a fielder’s choice to put runners on the corners. Cash Griffin singled up the middle, allowing Kainoa Trujillo to score and cut the lead to just a single run.
A walk loaded the bases but reliever Matthew Trujillo got the last batter to ground out to Carlos Gallego. The first baseman backhanded the ball and strolled to first to end the game.
It was a pitchers’ duel as the two teams combined for just 11 hits. Both starting pitchers were sharp with each team employed a very different strategy.
Flowing Wells decided to ride with Omar Rojas, who was coming off two relief appearances in the state tournament, but was called on to eat innings, and he did just that. He pitched 4 2/3 innings, scattering four hits, giving up just two earned runs before hitting his pitch limit. It was enough to earn the win.
“Omar was outstanding,” said Flowing Wells manager Gilbert Tovar. “He saved our pitching staff by going that deep.”
Trujillo, who started game two of the tournament, threw less than 35 pitches and will be able to pitch Monday in the elimination-bracket final against Litchfield Park.
Flowing Wells will have the bulk of its pitching staff available against Litchfield Park and will get two more pitchers back if it advances to Tuesday’s championship round.
Cactus Foothills started Gavin Rogowski. His offspeed pitches kept the normally potent Flowing Wells offense in check. He surrendered just a single hit and an unearned run, but was pulled after just 36 pitches, presumably to save him for a potential game on Monday.
Thanks to a three-run fourth inning by Flowing Wells, the Cactus Foothills hurler will not get a chance to pitch again this season.
Flowing Wells plated all three runs with two outs. Angel Sosa walked, and Cruz Marcial hit a sharp single to left that got past the fielder, which allowed Sosa to score and Marcial to race all the way to third.
Carlos Gallego lined an RBI single to center, which scored Marcial. Trujillo joined him on the bases after he was hit by a pitch. Dante Tovar crushed a line drive to left that hopped the fence for a ground-rule double. That scored Gallego but forced Trujillo to stay at third, where he would be stranded.
Trujillo replaced Rojas with two outs in the fifth and two runners on. He got a strikeout to get out of the inning and then had a perfect sixth. He earned the save.
Cactus Foothills jumped out to a 1-0 first-inning lead, but Flowing Wells tied it in the bottom half of the inning thanks to an infield error that allowed Marcial to score after he doubled and moved to third on a ground out.
Foothills regained the lead in the thanks to a Rogowski single.
Flowing Wells will face Litchfield Park on Monday at 6 p.m. after the defending state champs lost to Sunnyside on Saturday night.
Sunnyside is the last remaining undefeated team and will need just one win on Tuesday to win the state championship.
The game was tight early on. Sunnyside scored just a single run in the first inning and led 1-0 after four.
Litchfield Park pulled starter Dylan Boyle after four innings and 50 pitches and Sunnyside made it pay.
Sunnyside plated three runs in the inning. With two on, Emilio Medina scored on a failed pickoff attempt. A Shinn singled to left, and an errant throw allowed Jaden Flores to score. One batter later, Rodolfo Carbajal singled to left, scoring Humberto Rodriguez.
Sunnyside scored a lone run in the sixth, but Litchfield Park countered with three in the bottom of the sixth to make it a 5-3 game heading into the final inning.
Sunnyside added a trio of insurance runs, getting an RBI double from Rodriguez and benefiting from a two-run error.
Litchfield Park did not make it easy. It loaded the bases with two walks and a single, then scored on the third walk of the inning. Sunnyside went back to their bullpen, and Jake Galvez got the final two outs for Sunnyside and earned a save.
Andres Valenzuela threw six strong innings for Sunnyside, scattering just three hits and giving up four earned runs.
Sunnyside awaits the winner of Litchfield Park and Flowing Wells on Tuesday at 5 p.m. for the championship round.
The winner advances to the Junior League Baseball West Regional that runs July 23-31 at Bend, Ore.
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