2011 PCBL AA Division Fall Championship
Sunday, 12/04 @ Birmingham H.S.
Mad Bulls -vs- Sharks

 

Mad Bulls Edge Sharks in Championship Thriller

By Scot Sweet / PCBL Staff Writer

 

 

The Mad Bulls started things off in the top half of the 1st inning as Chris "Breezy" Guzman gets a leadoff single.He soon scores on a sacrifice by Daniel Dent. The Mad Bulls take the early 1-0 lead.

The Sharks  come up in the bottom of the 3rd inning; still trailing 1-0. They lead off with Marty Orosco who draws a walk. Robert Mendoza follows with a walk as well; putting 2 on for Steve Omlor who doubles home both runners. Mark Glennie follows with a sac fly; moving Omlor up 90 feet. The next batter walks; sending up Loyd Wood who singles home a run. Grant Withers answers with a base on balls; and the next batter hits into a fielder's choice with another run scoring on the play. Soon after, leadoff hitter Rick Maholchic singled home a run. In total, the Sharks get 5 runs on 3 hits to take a 5-1 lead through 3 complete innings of play.

But the Bulls chip away at the Shark lead in the top of the 4th inning.  Yamil "Devil Dog" Verde gets things going with a leadoff double. Daniel Dent follows with a single to put 2 runners on base for Abraham Rodriguez who singled in his 1st at bat. He singles home Verde and Dent. The Mad Bulls settle for the pair of runs in the inning to pull within 2 runs of the Sharks; now down by a score of 5-3 through 3 1/2 innings of play.

However, the Sharks get those runs back in a hurry in the bottom of the inning. With 1 out in the inning, Steve Olmor draws a walk. He's followed by Mark Glennie who reaches base safely due to a fielding error. Marty Orosco follows with a 2-run triple. The Sharks end up with 2 runs in the inning to extend their lead; now up 7-3 through 4 complete.

But here come those pesky Bulls in the top of the 5th. With 1 out in the inning, Luis Palma singles. Mike Ludesna then reaches base due to a fielding error. the next batter is Eisen "Ice" Castro. He slaps a single in the gap to score a pair. Two batter later, Ashley "Ash" Verde gets an RBI single of his own. The Mad bulls end up with 3 runs in the inning to pull within 1; down 7-6 after 4 1/2 innings of play.

The Mad Bulls come to bat in the top of the 6th inning; still trailing 7-6. Yamil Verde leads off and he is hit by a pitch. The next batter is Daniel Dent, who has a hit and an RBI to his credit already in this championship. He responds with an RBI single.They end up with 1 run in the inning to deadlock this contest at 7-7 as we enter the bottom of the 6th inning.

With the sharks failing to score in the bottom of the 6th inning; the Mad Bulls come to bat in the top of the 7th inning and the game still tied at 7. With 1 out in the inning, Sean Jackson and Luis Palma both draw walks. One of them is thrown out on the bases; putting one on with two out for Mike Ludesna. Still looking for a hit in this championship; Ludesna finds one ... big time. He hits a 2-run homer at a most opportune time to break the tie and take the lead in this Double A Championship; now leading 9-7 through 7 1/2 innings of play.

The Sharks come up to bat in the bottom of the 8th inning; still trailing 9-7. With the 1st two batters drawing walks; we have a pitching change as Steve Olmor comes to bat with runners on. He singles home a run to pull the Sharks to within 1 run of the Mad Bulls. However, a double play and a subsequent ground out would end the rally for the Sharks. They trailed 9-8 as we entered the 9th inning of this championship.

The Mad Bulls failed to score in the top half of the 9th inning; giving the Sharks just one more chance to steal this title away from the Mad Bulls who know that victory is only 3 outs away. The first batter for the Sharks grounds out. 1 down. The next batter for the Sharks grounds out. 2 down. And the 3rd and last batter for the sharks went down swinging to seal the deal. Congratulations to the Sharks for a great season and for proving to be such a worthy opponent as they were in this title game. And a huge congratulations to the 2011 Double A Fall Champion Mad Bulls! They trailed early; then got down to business and held on to claim the title! A great matchup and a memorable first title for the up-start Mad Bull squad! I'm sure we've not seen the last of them in this championship! 

 

 
GAME STATS
Mad Bulls   1 0 0 2 3 1 2 0 0   9 13 1
Sharks        0 0 5 2 0 0 0 1 0   8 7 1
 

Pitching Stats
(WP) Daniel Dent (Mad Bulls) No info
         Greg Francis (Mad Bulls) No info
         Eisen Castro (Mad Bulls) 2IP; Allowed 0 runs on 1 hit

(LP) Marty Orosco (Sharks) 6IP; Allowed 7 runs on 10 hits 
         Steve Omlor (Sharks) 3IP; Allowed 2 runs on 2 hits 

Mad Bulls Offensive Stars
Mike Ludesna     2 for 2; walk, 2-run Homer, 2 RBI's 2 runs
Daniel Dent     2 for 4; single, double, 2 RBI's, 1 run
"Ham" Rodriguez     2 for 4; 2 singles, 2 RBI's