SMHS BASEBALL
After the top of the first inning, San Marcos found themselves trailing the rival New Braunfels Canyon Cougars 1-0 in a critical district game.
But for Landon Munoz and the rest of the Rattlers, having a short term memory was going to be the key.
“We forgot about that inning and moved forward from that,” Munoz said. “We just battled back from there the whole game.”
The Rattlers scored four unanswered runs en route to a 4-1 win over Cougars that sealed up San Marcos’ fourth straight postseason appearance.
The victory improved San Marcos’ record to 197-1 overall and their district record to 7-3. With the win, the Rattlers are tied for second place with the Buda Johnson Jaguars who defeated the Cibolo Steele Knights 7-3.
Colson Geesee tags out the Canyon base-runner trying to take home and prevent a Cougar run from scoring. Daily Record photo by Gerald Castillo
Head Coach Bryan Webb was proud of his team for finding a way to win despite the slow start, noting the Rattlers can still improve on their play before the postseason.
“We were a little rusty coming out early a little bit,” Webb said.
”We were still kind of fatigued from Saturday and playing as much as we have, but we regathered and regrouped. The first inning was rough but like I told them, we’re not gonna complain about wins. There’s still some things we need to clean up and finish before we get to the playoffs.”
The Cougars scored the first run of the game in the top of the first inning, taking advantage of a Rattler fielding error to go up 1-0 on San Marcos. The Rattlers answered back in the bottom of the second. After a lead-off walk from Andrew Wilson and a double from Munoz to put runners on second and third with no outs, third baseman Mason Gamboa laid down the squeeze bunt to score Wilson at first and tie the game at 1-1.
After a walk from Colson Geesee loaded up the bases, the Rattlers took the lead on the fielder’s choice, allowing Munoz to score and put the Rattlers up 2-1.
San Marcos added on to their lead in the bottom of the third. With runners on the corners, Wilson grounded out to the second baseman as Elijah Ramirez scored from third base and extended the Rattler lead to 3-1.
The Rattlers tacked on their final run of the game in the bottom of fifth. With Wilson on first, Munoz connected with a triple into right field, scoring another run and giving the Rattlers a 4-1 lead.
“I wasn’t swinging at any junky stuff at the plate,” Munoz said. “I just stopped kicking to the side and just drove everything to the opposite field.
I’ve been working on it in practice, and it’s working right now.”
Canyon rallied in the top of the seventh inning with runners on first and second with one out. However, the Rattlers got the force out at second before Munoz caught the fly-out in right field for the final out and sealed the win.
Starting pitcher Jack Vasquez threw another complete game for the Rattlers, allowing just four hits, one earned run, three walks and striking out five batters in the win.
“He’s made a name for himself now and people are gearing up for him,” Webb said. “They’re fighting off stuff, and he’s still got two [pick-off throws] tonight. Probably not his best game of the year, but he learned how to pitch tonight when he didn’t have all three pitches. He’s not a secret anymore, and everybody knows who he is. Kudos to him from where he was game one to now and the improvements that he’s made.”
The Rattlers will conclude their two-game series with the Cougars Thursday night. First pitch is set for 7 p.m.
cmcwilliams @sanmarcosrecord.com Twitter: @ColtonBMc
Charlie Helgeson celebrates hitting a double in the Rattlers win against Canyon. Daily Record photo by Gerald Castillo
Jack Vasquez delivers the pitch in the Rattlers game against the Canyon Cougars. Daily Record photo by Gerald Castillo
