Tucson tops CDO to get 'revenge,' move closer to finals return

Sophomore pitcher George Arias had just tossed a 1-2-3 frame in the bottom of the fifth inning and Tucson High baseball coach Oscar Romero urged his players to believe, trailing the defending state champion by one run.

The Badgers obliged and now they're one win from being back in the state finals for the second year in a row.

Ninth-seeded Tucson manufactured seven runs over the final two innings on Thursday night at Amphitheater to knock off No. 6 Canyon del Oro 8-2 in the loser quarterfinals of the Division II state tournament. The showdown was a rematch of last year's state final, won 3-1 by CDO.

"It most definitely feels like revenge," said Arias, who took the loss in that game last May. "Last year left a bad taste in my mouth and I didn't like it.”

The Badgers (22-9) face No. 10 Ironwood Ridge at Amphitheater on Saturday, at 7 p.m. for a chance to play Phoenix Greenway in Tuesday's state championship game at Tempe Diablo Stadium.

“We're just believing,” Romero said. “We were preaching that we were going to play every single out in this ball game. They're just in total belief of what we can do, these guys are just locked in and they totally believe.”

Tucson senior Martin Garcia led off the sixth inning on Thursday night with his second double of the game. Two batters later, Arias singled to center to score Garcia and tie the game at 2-2.

Senior Kyle Rivera followed with a single to left field and senior Carlos Cordova came off the bench to bring in a run on an error by the Dorados. Then junior Luis Samorano hit a sacrifice fly to give the Badgers a 4-2 lead.

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Arias came out to defiantly shut the door on the Dorados in the bottom frame, as he appeared to be throwing harder to strike out the side. He finished with seven strikeouts and surrendered four singles over six innings pitched.

“I think I got stronger as the game progressed," Arias said. "The atmosphere in the dugout, it just got me totally pumped.

"It just felt like we had the whole team out there, even though we had just nine on the field. It gives me confidence knowing they have my back."

Tucson's offense continued to roll in the top of the seventh. The Dorados intentionally walked senior right fielder Ricky Martinez to load the bases with one out in the frame.

Arias made CDO pay with a two-run double to center. After another intentional walk to load the bases, CDO committed its third error of the night and allowed two more runs to score, giving Tucson an 8-2 cushion heading to the final three outs.

“It feels great, I've been losing to them all my life,” Martinez said. “It feels great to get a little bit of revenge."

CDO's typically high-scoring offense was quiet for most of Thursday night, as it totaled just five hits – all singles. The Dorados also had three errors and stranded 10 men on base on their way to being eliminated.

“I definitely think we’re the better team, we just didn't show that tonight,” CDO senior catcher Tristan Peterson said. "We just didn't make the plays we needed to. These have been the best four years of my life so far. I couldn't have asked to go to a better school. I love each and every single one of those guys.”