UIL baseball playoffs: Rouse off to Class 5A regional quarterfinals
Rouse senior Landon Miller may not have gotten the pitch he expected, but it didn’t matter.
Miller blasted a grand slam, which Raiders coach Chad Krempin called “the hardest hit ball I’ve ever seen,” in the top of the first inning Saturday to set the tone for Rouse’s 8-4 win over Alamo Heights in their deciding Game 3 of a Class 5A area-round playoff series at Dripping Springs.
“(The Alamo Heights pitcher) threw me a couple of fastballs early, and I assumed he was coming with a slider or change-up,” Miller said. “But he came back with a fastball, and I kind of turned on it and hit it out.”
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Rayner Heinrich was hit by a pitch, Tyler Espinosa singled and Oscar Salazar walked to load the bases for Miller, who then belted his slam to the power alley in left-center field. What made his shot more impressive was that he hit it into the wind, though Miller was more concerned with helping the team win.
“It’s indescribable to do that in a playoff game,” Miller said. “I’m super glad I could give the team a lead and give our pitcher some comfort.”
Miller finished 2-for-3 with five RBIs, Espinosa was 2-for-3 with an RBI and Salazar smacked a run-scoring double to help the Raiders make sure there wasn’t any late drama. Espinosa’s RBI single in the second gave Rouse a 5-0 lead, with Miller later ripping an RBI double in the fourth. The Raiders put across two insurance runs in the sixth on Salazar’s extra-base hit and Xander Forsell’s sacrifice fly.
Dalton Holbrook tossed 3⅔ innings in relief, striking out three and only allowing one earned run to pace Rouse on the mound.
“We pitched when it mattered most,” said Krempin, whose teams have won 12 playoff series over the last four seasons. “We continue to work through the year and press forward and by the time the playoffs come around it feels like we’re playing our best in May.”
Rouse will next play Cedar Park in the regional quarterfinals in a rematch from District 25-5A play and the same round a year ago.
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This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: UIL baseball playoffs: Rouse off to Class 5A regional quarterfinals
