Tuloso-Midway completes sweep of Alice to advance back to regional semifinals
BEEVILLE — Camdyn Rozypal made the most of his return to the lineup after missing Game 1 of Tuloso-Midway's regional quarterfinal series against Alice.
The senior first baseman gave the Warriors the lead for good with a two-run single in the first inning and added another run-producing hit in the second inning.
Rozypal finished with a game-best three RBI to help the Warriors capture a 10-0 win on Saturday at Joe Hunter Field at Coastal Bend College.
Max Lara smacked a game-clinching hit in the sixth inning to secure the Warriors' ticket to the regional semifinals by way of the 10-run mercy rule.
"I felt really good after missing Game 1 and I felt comfortable at the plate," Rozypal said. "We've seen Alice a couple of times this year and we were ready for them... I was glad to be back with my team."
Tuloso-Midway returns to the fourth round of the playoffs for the second straight season to play Sinton, a series winner against Needville.
The Warriors and Pirates played a non-district contest on March 5 with T-M winning 15-7.
"The good thing is we've been here before," Tuloso-Midway assistant coach TJ Akers said. "This is kind of the same story as last year, but now we're hoping to change the ending of it next week."
The top of the Warriors' lineup did most of the damage against the Coyotes by combining for five hits and five RBI.
T-M led 8-0 after two innings with its final two runs coming across in the sixth.
Alice finished with two hits against Luis Rios, who pitched six innings, walked three and struck out four.
"It was what we wanted after I had a rough start on the mound," Rios said of the offense scoring eight runs early. "We capitalized quick and we kept it going. We kept the pressure on and as long as we keep doing that, we're going to be alright."
Alice's best chance came in the first when the first three batters reached to load the bases.
Rios pitched out of the jam by retiring three straight batters.
"Those guys are good," Alice senior Cash Benavidez said. "They're a good hitting ball club and they pitched good. Hats off to them, they played better than us."
High School Baseball
Class 4A Regional Quarterfinals
Game 2
Tuloso-Midway 10, Alice 0 (6 innings)
Saturday's highlights: Alice vs. Tuloso-Midway
Alice started strong by loading the bases in the first inning before Tuloso-Midway pitcher Luis Rios escaped the jam to keep the game scoreless. The Warriors' offense backed up Rios by plating eight runs in the first two innings and two more in the sixth to secure the Game 2 win in six innings. T-M sent nine batters to the plate in the first inning and seven in the second.
Saturday's stars
Camdyn Rozypal finished with two early hits and drove in three runs to lead the Warriors. Tony Hinajosa drove in two runs and finished 1 for 3 and Johnny Herrera scored two runs and finished with a double. Max Lara went 1 for 3, including a game-clinching hit in the sixth inning. Rios pitched six scoreless innings and struck out four. Rios also recorded an RBI after drawing a bases loaded walk in the second inning. Alice pitcher Robert Ramirez allowed two runs in 4.2 innings and struck out two. Ramirez also collected one of the Coyotes' two hits. Tomas Emede Lozano also had a base hit for Alice.
They said it
Alice coach Nick Alvarado on the future of Alice baseball: "It's a testament to the commitment of these parents, the community, our kids, our coaches and the administration for putting into our program. It doesn't start with me, it's a vision we had four years ago. We've had a guy come in and do everything they can to provide everything we've needed... I love the competitive district that we're going to be in with the addition of Bishop. It's going to push everybody to take care of business. If we're going to continue the playoff run, we're going to have to match that technical preparation. I know we have the right kids, right support and right coaches to get that done."
Tuloso-Midway assistant coach TJ Akers on the Warriors' early surge: "We knew winning yesterday's game was going to put us in a pretty good position. In the past playoff games, we've been hitting the ball better on Saturdays than Friday for whatever reason. We came out and did that again with one through nine getting it done."
Game 1
Tuloso-Midway 5, Alice 3
Friday's highlights: Alice vs. Tuloso-Midway
Friday's Game 1 of the Class 4A regional quarterfinals was the third meeting between the District 31-4A rivals and a rematch of last year's regional quarterfinals series. After losing the first two games, Alice jumped out in front first with back-to-back run-producing hits in the third inning. Just like the Coyotes, the Warriors rallied with two outs by scoring four runs in the fifth inning, which proved to be the difference.
Friday's stars
Mark Chapa struck out three in a complete-game effort and drove in two runs with a key two-run double in the fifth inning. Joshua Garcia started the Warriors' rally by tying the game with a two-run double in the fifth. Cash Benavidez finished with five strikeouts on the mound, had two hits and drove in the game's first run in the third inning. Tomas Lozano had two hits and an RBI for Alice and Justin Arellano added another RBI for the Coyotes in the sixth.
They said it
Tuloso-Midway assistant coach TJ Akers on winning Game 1: "Winning this first one puts us in a good position. We still have to come out and compete because they are going to do the same thing. We have to keep the bats going, stay with a positive attitude and I think we'll be alright."
Alice coach Nick Alvarado on the Coyotes' preparation for Game 2: "We played error-free baseball and that's No. 1. We kept the ball in the ballpark and they (T-M) are very capable of losing baseballs. If we can keep the ball in the ballpark, retire the outs in order and keep free passes to a minimum, we're going to be in a pretty good dog fight."
Rey Castillo is a sports reporter for the Caller-Times and a graduate of Texas A&M-Kingsville. He may be reached at rey.castillo@caller.com or on Twitter @reycastillo361
This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Tuloso-Midway completes sweep of Alice in UIL baseball playoffs
