Saturday, April 27, 1996

Eagles lose to Odessa, finish third

By LANCE FLEMING
Sports Writer

Abilene High's best regular season since 1972 ended Friday in a bad sequel of the old movie "Freaky Friday."

That's the old movie where the mom and daughter switch places through some sort of biological experiment and everything immediately goes bonkers.

Friday at Blackburn Field, Abilene High and Odessa High switched roles as the Bronchos spanked the Eagles, 11-3, to win their only District 4-5A game of the year and knock the Eagles out of a potential playoff for the district title.

The Eagles had their destiny in their own hands entering Friday's regular-season finale.
All they had to do was beat Odessa High, which entered the game at 0-11 in district, and then sit back and wait for Monday to roll around and play either Midland Lee or Cooper for the district championship.

Instead the Eagles are left with third place in the district and a bi-district matchup next weekend against District 3-5A runner-up Amarillo High (20-9-1). Neither the time nor the site of the Eagles' first playoff game in 24 years has been determined.

The Bronchos, though, more closely resembled a playoff team than did the Eagles, who committed three errors and had at least three other mental mistakes that hurt them in the loss.

Entering the game the Bronchos had committed 45 errors in 11 district games, had the lowest batting average in the league at .224 and had been beaten by the scores of 20-0, 23-2 and 11-1.
Odessa High got the key hits - 13 in all - when it needed them, made the plays in the field and got a solid pitching performance from sophomore Humberto Aguilar.

Before Friday's game the Eagles hadn't been held to less than six hits in district, but they could only muster four off the Bronchos, who entered the game with a team ERA of 9.63. Abilene High had also committed a league-low 14 errors and had played solid, fundamental baseball throughout the season.

But that all changed Friday when it appeared someone had secretly put Odessa High players in Abilene High uniforms, and vice versa.

"I kept trying to tell people there was no such thing as a 'gimme' in baseball," AHS head coach Jim Reese said. "We weren't overconfident, and we didn't take them for granted. We knew we'd have to play well, and we didn't. But I guess you just live and learn."

Abilene High stranded 12 runners on base, and couldn't take advantage of the nine walks Aguilar passed out. Of the 12, seven were left stranded at either second or third.

The Eagles left the bases loaded in the third and left two men in the first, fourth and sixth innings.
"I think some guys started pressing at the plate when we didn't get some key hits," Reese said. "It was a game where we had to match them hit for hit, and we just couldn't do it."

OHS jumped out in front 4-0 in the second, thanks to a pair of Eagle errors.

With one out and a man on first base, Chris Barnes laid down a sacrifice bunt that third baseman Pascual Mirelez fielded and threw to second. But AHS second baseman John Michael Herrera dropped the throw and everyone was safe. Jason Westfall followed by striking out, which would have ended the inning without any damage.

Joey Williams then followed with an RBI single to right field. But on the play, AHS rightfielder Chris Cortinaz wound up and threw the ball into the AHS dugout trying to get Barnes at third.

Barnes came in to make it a 2-0 game and Williams went to third. He later scored on a wild pitch to make it 3-0 and Rene Saenz later scored on another wild pitch to make it a 4-0 game.

Those errors weren't the only problems AHS had on the day.

In the bottom of the fourth inning, the Eagles were still in the game and put runners at first and third with one out. Justin Reese then sent a fly ball to left that was plenty deep to score courtesy runner Cedric Word from third base. But Word didn't tag and the Eagles failed to score in the inning.

In the next half-inning the Eagles had a chance to get themselves out of some trouble, but they bungled a rundown between third base and the plate, and that eventually led to two more runs. That rundown came after a Justin Reese throw from center field to third base flew over everybody, hit a pole on the fence surrounding the field and bounced back into the field of play.

"We made two or three mistakes - besides the errors - that were very poor, and I was disappointed in that," Coach Reese said.

The Bronchos, who led 6-0 after five innings, would put five more runs on the board in the sixth inning, four of them coming on a Robert Graham grand slam off Mirelez, who relieved an ineffective Neil Mullins after 12/3 innings.

The Eagles put up three window-dressing runs in the sixth inning, but the Bronchos wouldn't let them draw any closer.

Now the task for the Eagles is to put this awful ending behind them and get ready for the playoffs.

"Some people tend to forget how far we've come this season," Coach Reese said. "I'm still proud of these guys, and we'll be OK."

As long as they don't play on another "Freaky Friday."