The Farmersville Aztecs lose a one run lead over the Lindsay Cardinals in the third inning for a 7-3 loss
FARMERSVILLE — After batting in the winning run, Lindsay’s relief pitcher John Mosqueda struck out seven batters in four innings.
The Lindsay Cardinals beat the Farmersville Aztecs 7-3 in their matchup on Thursday, April 27. Though the Cardinals scored the first two, the Aztecs followed it up with three more and the Cardinals had to come back from behind before winning it all. Junior John Mosqueda batted in the winning run by senior Gio Chavez. Mosqueda then took the mound to close out the game, striking out seven of the 13 batters he faced.
The Cardinals came into the third inning down a run but at the top of their batting lineup. Juan Vasquez kicked off the inning with a single to get on base. The next batter struck out, but Chavez hit a huge double to send Vasquez home to tie the game. Chavez was in position to score the game winning run if Mosqueda could get a hit. A single from Mosqueda sent Chavez speeding home for the fourth run of the game.
Vasquez and Chavez scored the Cardinals’ first two runs of the game in the first inning. Chavez hit a single, batting in Vasquez, then stole bases all the way home due to multiple errors by the Farmersville defense. The Aztecs scored a run in the first, then had a huge second inning. With the bases loaded, Jesse Lomeli walked home from third for a run after Leo Hernandez was hit by a pitch. AJ De La Cruz scored the Aztecs’ final run.
The last time the Aztecs faced the Cardinals on April 11, they lost 8-0. This time, they managed to score three runs and were even in the lead for a short period of time. The Aztecs were consistently able to shut down the bottom of Lindsay’s batting lineup, but the top of the lineup caused a lot of problems for the Aztec defense.
“We’re up on them 3-2 and kind of ran into a little mistake on pitch calls and then next thing you know we’re behind 4-3 and then it’s 7-3,” Farmersville head coach Freddie Lopez said.
After the first two innings, the Aztecs really struggled to get going on offense. They didn’t get past second base again until the seventh inning and only had two hits in the final five innings, one of which was a bunt by Lomeli. Mosqueda struck out seven of the thirteen batters he faced after coming in to relieve Bailey Brown in the fourth inning.
“One thing is that we have four really good pitchers,” Kendig said. “If one is not going well we can go with somebody else.”
The Cardinals are second in the East Sequoia League with only a single league loss to the Woodlake Tigers. If they keep the spot through the next three games, they will move on to the playoffs. Their next opponent will be Strathmore at home on May 4.
The Aztecs are in fourth place behind Orange Cove and will not advance to the playoffs, but have made improvements since the beginning of their season. Their next opponent is also Strathmore, but on May 2.
