Cate went down battling against a tough pitcher in Friday’s CIF Division 7 baseball quarterfinal on Friday.
The Rams scored a run and had the tying run on base against Lynwood Firebaugh ace Anthony Rios in the bottom of the seventh inning. But Rios threw a wicked change-up to notch his 10th strikeout and preserve a 3-2 decision at Cate.
Rios did a masterful job of mixing up his pitches to keep Cate batters off balance for most of the game. He came up huge for his team in the second inning after the Rams loaded the bases with one out, getting a strike out and inducing the next batter to hit into a force play.
Firebaugh jumped on Cate starter Justin Lucchesi for a run in the first inning. Jose Hernandez, Daniel Miranda and Rios hit consecutive singles to load the bases and Mario Gutierrez followed with a roller to first base to bring home Hernandez.
Firebaugh made it 2-0 in the third when Anthony Arreola singled to center, stole second, moved to third on a sacrifice by Jose Hernandez and scored on a long flyout to right field by Daniel Miranda.
Cate (15-3) got two runners on in its half of the third, but Rios escaped by getting Brian Baird to line out to right.
The Falcons added a third run in the fourth on a RBI double to center by Omar Rodarte.
Cate finally got on the board in the fifth, capitalizing on a pair of infield errors. Carlos Fairbanks singled in Humza Khurshid to break the shutout. The Rams almost scored a second run in the inning. After Zach Ell drew an intentional walk, Baird hit a dribbler in front of the mound that Rios fielded and threw to catcher Daniel Hernandez as Lucchesi ran home from third. Hernandez dropped the ball but picked it up barehanded, barely getting the force out at the plate.
Fairbanks replaced Lucchesi on the mound in the sixth and pitched out of jam to keep the game close.
The Rams cut it to 3-2 in the seventh when Khurshid reached base on an infield single, went to third on a wild pitch and a ground out and scored on a blast to left field by Ell.
But Rios stepped up in crunch and ended Cate’s season.
