Valencia Vikings baseball could almost taste victory.
Leading 3-2 on Tuesday at home over the Moorpark Musketeers (17-10-1), the Vikings (15-13-1) had their hearts broken after a two-out, two-run double in the top of the seventh inning gave Moorpark a 4-3 lead and eventual victory in the CIF Southern Section Division 2 second round.
Valencia head coach Brad Meza said he could only tell his players he was proud of them for competing and getting as close as they did to moving on to the quarterfinals.
“The game is a grind,” Meza said. “They go to school, they come out here, they have to deal with me. You’ve got to let them know you’re proud of them. For some of these guys, baseball’s over. For some of them, they keep going. But at the end of the day, we try to produce quality people, hard-working people, and I think we’ve done that. That’s something they need to take pride in.”
Moorpark advances to the quarterfinals, facing the Crean Lutheran Saints on Friday.
The Vikings were one strike away from moving on before Moorpark’s Jacob Shannon-Wilkerson reached on an infield single to put two runners on with two outs. Moorpark’s Greg Lareva then drove in both runners with a double that Valencia center fielder Will Verlaque just missed snagging on a diving attempt.
“It’s a game of inches,” Meza said. “We have the best center fielder in the league. We had all the faith in the world that he was gonna go track that ball, but it wasn’t in our favor today.”
Moorpark started the game on the front foot, tagging Valencia starting pitcher Noah Jaquez for two runs in the top of the first. The senior had to throw 39 pitches in the frame, giving up two hits and three walks.
Jaquez was nearly perfect over the next five innings, finishing with just the two hits allowed to go along with seven strikeouts. He did allow five walks, but was able to work around those with relative ease.
“He came in after the first thing and we told him like, ‘Hey, if you want to go for the long haul, you got to go compete a little bit better,’” Meza said. “And he did that. That’s all we can ask.”
Valencia got back into the game in the second inning after a walk, two hit batters and an error allowed two runs to cross.
The score was deadlocked at 2-2 until the bottom of the fifth when the Vikings took their first, and only, lead of the game. Lincoln Hunt reached on a fielder’s choice, followed by a walk and a single from Matthew Moffit, both with two outs, to bring Hunt home.
The Musketeers and Vikings had played two games against each other in the regular season. Both teams won once, and both ended in one-run games.
“That’s the way baseball works, man,” Meza said. “It’s the way the baseball gods put it out there, and unfortunately, it didn’t go our way that time.”
Moopark starting pitcher Derek Nickels struck out two and allowed two hits over 4 2/3 innings pitched. Tanner Stotts was able to shut the Vikings down in the seventh, but not before Gian Martinez nearly tied things up with a blast to left field that was caught just shy of the wall.
Meza and the rest of the coaches could be seen giving the seniors words of encouragement following the game. Meza said the main message he had for them was to just be themselves as they go through their lives.
“Take the lessons that you’ve learned here out on the field and apply them to your everyday. Be the best whatever it may be — student, baseball player,” Meza said. “Whatever it may be, just keep being the best version of yourself.”
