Here's how Calallen baseball was finally able to top Sinton in the playoffs
SINTON — Through the course of three years of previous playoff games between Calallen and Sinton, there has been one thing that has hampered the Wildcats — timely hitting.
In two one-game playoffs, and a series in 2023, the Wildcats rarely found key hits to overcome the Pirates in multiple close losses as Calallen was 0-4 against the Pirates in playoff games since 2021.
That changed in 2024.
Through two games of a series sweep of fellow Coastal Bend baseball blue blood Sinton this season, the Wildcats kept finding ways to produce the runs needed to finally overcome their Class 4A playoff nemesis. Calallen completed the sweep with a 5-3 victory on Friday at Gene Kasprzyk Field, and again it was timely hitting complemented by solid pitching from a young arm that keyed the Wildcats.
Calallen will advance to the regional quarterfinals for the first time since 2022, which was the last time the Wildcats advanced to a regional final.
Big fourth inning
The Wildcats started the big fourth inning with back-to-back singles as both runners advanced a base on a sacrifice. Sinton coach Adrian Alaniz elected to intentionally walk pitcher Drayton Mitchell, and then Justen Calderon was hit by a pitch to bring in a run. That was an indication of how the Wildcats scored five runs in that inning as run scored on a fielder's choice ground out, a single by Hayden Brock and a Chase Lynch infield single.
The Wildcats sent 10 hitters to the plate in the inning, and it proved to be enough for the victory.
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Sinton keeps digging
The Pirates showed their state tournament meddle in the fifth by scoring two runs to close the gap with an RBI ground out by Nate Mutchler and a run-scoring single by Derek Garcia. Calallen starter and left-hander Drayton Mitchell worked out the jam with a strikeout to end the threat and keep the score at 5-3.
Mitchell pitched into the seventh after a 28-pitch first inning before exiting after a single by Marco Gonzales to start the seventh. Mitchell finished the night giving up three runs on seven hits with four walks and six strikeouts.
The Pirates, meanwhile, put two runners on in the seventh but Wildcats closer Cody Andrade struck out the final two hitters he faced to close out the game and earn a second straight save.
Up next
Calallen will face Alice or Floresville in the Class 4A regional quarterfinals at a date and time to be determined.
This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Calallen baseball uses timely hitting, big inning to push past Sinton
