Jaguars Come Back Late For 4-1 Victory Over The Hurricanes

As Jaguars coach Carlos Iglesias puts it, Jake Jacobs is a game changer.

On Wednesday night Jacobs showed why his coaches and teammates give him so much respect, coming up with a huge hit to lead the Jaguars to a 4-1 comeback victory over the Hurricanes in a Bracket F contest played at Northeast High.

“Jake is a big asset to this team,” Iglesias said. “We know he can hit, and when he gets on base he can make things happen. Tonight he got a big hit for us.”

With the scored tied at one apiece in the bottom of the fifth inning, Jacobs battled with relief pitcher Isiah Blackwell in an eight-pitch at bat before he finally lined a shot into left field to score both Jesse Gonzalez and Eduardo Espinosa.

After Alex Monge reached on a bunt single, Gonzalez had gotten aboard with a nice shot to the left infield gap. But Hurricanes third baseman Abrailis Jimenez had done a good job of snaring the hit and keeping it in the infield, which held both runners.

Espinosa still managed to send a shot through the left side to push Monge home and put the Jaguars (1-1) on the board.

The Hurricanes went to the bullpen for Blackwell to face the three-hole hitter Jacobs, but in the end the talented second baseman prevailed with the game-winning hit.

Jacobs padded the lead by advancing on a balk call, then stealing third and coming home on an infield error. He finished 2 for 3 with four stolen bases on the day.

“You’ve got to make a statement once you get on base,” Jacobs said. “I like being the guy in the big moments and it feels good to be a player who can help the team win. You’ve got to stay up and hit the ball at the right times.”

Suddenly the Jaguars were on the other end of this pitching duel, and ready to turn the ball over to right hander Derick Garcia to close it out.

Garcia answered the call by shutting down all seven batters he faced to earn the victory.

“Derick attacks the zone and we have confidence in him,” Iglesias said. “Our pitching did an outstanding job for us. Our philosophy is always to play the game pitch to pitch and worry about making plays at that time.”

The Hurricanes (0-2) took the lead in the top of the second inning as Michael Grosfield laced a shot to the right-centerfield gap for a leadoff double. D.J. Kelly lay down a sacrifice bunt to move Grosfield to third, and starting pitcher Ralph Morel drove him in on an infield shot that went for an error.

The way Morel was pitching it seemed as though the team’s slim 1-0 lead just may hold up, as he recorded eight strikeouts over four and two-third innings while issuing only one walk and allowing four hits.

“Ralph Morel has really stepped up for us this fall,” Hurricanes coach Kevin Carney said. “He is finally getting it down what he needs to do and he has had a great fall.”

Meanwhile Jaguars starter Alejandro Kan was equally sharp, recording seven strikeouts in four an a third innings while allowing three hits and a walk.

In such an exciting and close game both teams proved their mettle under fire while fighting for their first win.
“It’s a great experience in a tournament game that creates more intensity,” Carney said. “We had some positives, but we’ve got to learn to take advantage and to sustain for seven innings.”

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