HINKLE, FIVE RUN NINTH HELPS MADERA BEAT HANFORD IN EXTRAS

Coyotes ace Haden Hinkle strikes out seven; Bullpups out of title game contention.

By Megan Poindexter
VSP Senior Writer-

Five runs in the top of the ninth inning set Madera ahead of Hanford for good at the Fresno Easter Classic, as the Coyotes came from behind to earn a 6-1 victory and put an end to Hanford’s undefeated tournament record.

“Our goal was to knock them out because if we aren’t going to be in the championship game we don’t want anyone else to be in it either,” said Madera head coach George McWherter. “Most of the teams that are in contention to win this are from the Tri-River Athletic Conference, so it is a great tournament for us.”

Prior to the game, Hanford was just one of a handful of teams with a perfect tournament record and chance to play in the championship game, but that was ruined with the loss to Madera.

It was a close game from the beginning, as both teams got off to a slow start. But Hanford got on the board first when David Sumaya singled to left field to bring home Connor West to take a 1-0 in the third inning.

Three scoreless innings went by as Madera continued to struggle at the plate and it looked as though the Bullpups were going to hold on for the win still up by one point to start the seventh inning.

Madera had a little something up their sleeves, as Nick Caraccilo and James Brager singled to get on base. With a full count Justin Nash followed with a sacrifice fly that allowed runners to advance and bring Caraccilo home to tie the game.

“We told out kids that they needed better pitch selection,” said McWherter. “Once they started picking the right pitches we started hitting better.”

High school teams normally only play through seven innings, but as the game was still tied 1-1 after the seventh the game continued.

Neither team scored in the eighth inning and then Madera exploded, scoring five runs in the ninth to finalize a 6-1 lead.

After the first three batters, the Bullpups were in a hole with two outs. One run was scored by a base hit from Nash, which was followed by James Gray drawing the walk to load the bases. David Allen singled to record two RBI and another single by Ryan Rivera brought in two more to extend the lead to five.

Although it took Madera awhile to get things started offensively, starting pitcher Haden Hinkle had a great outing from start to finish.

“Even when Haden is having an off day he is still a really good pitcher,” said McWherter.

The senior, who has yet to receive a scholarship to play college baseball, pitched all nine innings, finishing with a pitch count of 108 and recording seven strikeouts.

“The goal was to keep my pitch count down in the game,” said Hinkle. “But it’s great to score five runs in the top of the ninth and have that comfort going into the bottom of the inning.”

The Coyotes concluded the tournament with a 3-1 record and now will turn their attention to finishing the TRAC regular season. With tough competition, Hinkle believes that the tournament has only prepared his team more for finishing the season.

“We haven’t been batting well in the TRAC,” said Hinkle. “But we got our bats swinging at the tournament.”

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