Bobcats Rally Late For 4-1 Victory Over The Panthers
Matt Hardy pitched a complete game and got the win for the Bobcats.
Matt Hardy never lost faith in his teammates.
The senior starter was pitching a fantastic game, yet his team was on the wrong end of the scoreboard.
Trailing 1-0 in the top of the seventh, the Bobcats rallied back to reward their pitcher’s stellar performance by taking a 4-1 lead over the Panthers.
Hardy then remained in the game to close out the final frame and earn the victory, giving the Bobcats the big victory in the best-of-three series in the second round of the HSBN Fall Classic played at Flanagan High.
“We capitalized on a couple of situations, but that is why we always stress to the guys about playing to 21 outs,” Bobcats coach Sergio Ambros said. “It was a good battle and it was exactly what we expected. We had faced their ace, Brandon Acevedo, before and we knew he was really good.”
Acevedo was good, taking a shutout into the seventh inning. But on this night, Hardy was just a little bit better.
The right-handed Hardy went the distance for the complete-game win, limited the Panthers to three hits while striking out 10 batters. He did not walk any hitters, throwing 66 of his 88 pitches for strikes and keeping his opponents on their toes throughout.
Panthers’ catcher Jesus Espana touched Hardy on his only mistake of the night, sending the first pitch he saw in the bottom of the fifth inning sailing high over the center field fence for a solo home run.
Catcher Jesus Espana hit a shot over the left-center field fence to give the Panthers a 1-0 lead.
“Giving up that home run got to me a little bit,” Hardy admitted. “But I knew my teammates would come through. It was a lot more comfortable feeling with them behind me on defense. It’s a good mindset we have as a team, and we can see how we’ve developed this fall.”
Hardy faced only four batters over the minimum, allowing just two more baserunners following Espana’s dinger.
But Acevedo continued to hold the vaunted Bobcats lineup in check, and Panthers coach Onel Garcia did not hesitate to send his ace back out there for the final three outs.
“We want to win or lose with him on the mound,” Garcia said. “Acevedo was great on the mound tonight, and we had them on the ropes. We showed them that we can compete with anybody. It was a good game, and we enjoyed it.”
The first four batters reached for the Bobcats in the seventh. Hector Abreu ignited the rally by cracking a shot through the right side on a hit-and-run that sent Xavier Beltran attempting to come all the way home from first base after the ball got by the outfielder.
But Trevor Takacs had a perfect throw home that allowed Espana to apply the tag and temporarily maintain the Panthers slim lead.
Acevedo was tough to hit through his six and two-thirds on the mound.
With the offensive fire now lit, Pedro Castillo added to the blaze by slapping a single through the defense to put runners on the corners. Castillo then initiated a double-steal that worked perfectly in allowing courtesy runner Aires Rivera to come in from third and give the Bobcats their first score.
Castillo then came home to hand the Bobcats their first lead when Evan Stocker reached on an error.
Codey Williams drew a walk, prompting a pitching change and bringing Christian Khawly to the plate. Khawly wasted no time in sending the first pitch he saw far into the left outfield corner, pushing a pair of insurance runs in to close the scoring. Khawly finished 2 for 3 on the day.
Acevedo recorded five strikeouts in his six and two-third innings of work, walking two while allowing six hits and three earned runs.
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