Walden Grove's baseball team saw its chances of returning to the Division III state championship game on the ropes on Monday afternoon, so the Red Wolves staged a comeback.
Again.
In both the seventh and eighth innings, Walden Grove rallied to tie crosstown rival Sahuarita 7-7 in a game that was called due to darkness after eight innings. The game will be completed Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. and Walden Grove will play Palo Verde in its regular-season finale after that.
No. 27 Walden Grove is off Tuesday but fourth-ranked Sahuarita travels to play at Safford. Playoff brackets will be released Thursday and the 32-team tournament begins the next day.
Monday's game was a dramatic way to kick off the final week of the regular season, with a clash between two teams on track to play in the first round of the Division III state tournament on Friday.
“This is where baseball becomes a great game,” Walden Grove coach Rene Valdez said. “To be able to come back twice and see fantastic plays being made or fantastic hits and clutch timing to come through, I mean this is what the game is all about, this is why we play as kids, this is why we coach as adults.
“These are the games that you kind of live to see.”
Walden Grove erased a 4-2 deficit against Sahuarita in the seventh inning on Monday, thanks to a two-run double by junior middle infielder Joe Martinez. The Red Wolves attempted to win the game on a squeeze but junior outfielder Andrew Kouris was called out at first before the runner at third could score.
One inning later, Sahuarita loaded the bases and scored on a passed ball. Then Mustang junior middle infielder Rigo Leon drove in two runs to give Sahuarita a 7-4 lead.
Walden Grove responded with an RBI single by senior left fielder Chris Suarez and then junior utility player Wright Avant brought in two runs to tie the game.
“It was very exciting, I’ve been struggling this season to hit,” Avant said. “It feels really good to be able to come through when we need it the most.”
Sahuarita senior Austin Bryan got out of the eighth with a strikeout.
If Walden Grove does reach the state tournament, it would be expected to do damage. Last year the Red Wolves made it to the state championship game as a No. 18 seed, losing to Phoenix Northwest Christian 3-2 in eight innings.
“Last year the same thing happened, we got ranked low, but we fought with every team and ended up making it to the championship game,” Avant said.
