Kingwood vs Cy-Falls

May 27, 2005

Game two of the Regional semifinals was totally opposite to the opening game of the series. A pitchers duel ensued between Kingwood starter Mike Ojala and Ryan Jenkins from Cy Falls. The Mustangs had three hits in the opening inning but failed to score. Finally each team scored a run in the fifth inning. The Mustangs run came as Thomas McCormick led off and reached first on an error. Clint Stover entered as a pinch runner for McCormick. An out later pinch hitter John Seitz walked and Johnny Whittleman was hit by a pitch loading the bases. Kenneth Negron followed with a single driving in Stover with the Mustang run. Cy Falls answered back with a run in the bottom of the inning. This would be all the scoring on the afternoon as the teams scraped and clawed their way through eleven innings of great high school baseball. On top of great pitching, a great running over the shoulder catch by Kyle Denney in center field was featured on High School Sports Extra as one of the plays of the week. The game was suspended after eleven innings due to Kingwood High School graduation ceremonies. The teams would resume play at 10:00 Saturday morning at the University of Houston field with game three to follow if needed.

As the teams gathered and resumed play on a beautiful Saturday morning the Mustangs were back at the top of the line up with leadoff hitter Johnny Whittleman at the plate. On the first pitch from the Eagle pitcher, Whittleman hit a long home run out onto Cullen Blvd. giving the Mustangs a 2-1 lead. Kenneth Negron then doubled and Doug Simmons and Austin Wood were both hit by pitches loading the bases. A ground ball from Austin Pendleton brought home one more run giving Kingwood the 3-1 lead. John Touchton who relieved the previous evening in the ninth inning then induced three ground balls to third setting the side down in order as the Mustang win advances them to the Regional finals against district 22-5A rival Humble. Mike Ojala was the starter for Kingwood and pitched eight great innings. Ojala allowed one run on eleven hits, only one walk which was intentional and had eight strikeouts. Touchton went the final four innings allowing no runs, one walk, two hits and four strikeouts to get the win. Whittleman(3-5, HR) Negron(2-5) Wood(2-4) Simmons(1-5) Pendleton(1-4) and Ojala(1-4) had the Mustang hits in the game.