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Join our talented VYPE Live crew for the Poth vs. Natalia volleyball match-up on Tuesday September 15th:
Ridge Point is 31-4 and headed to the regional semifinals after sweeping No. 1 state-ranked Tompkins in their Class 6A regional quarterfinal series at Tompkins High.
KATY—Ridge Point wanted Tompkins.
When the UIL released its postseason baseball brackets a few weeks ago, the Panthers liked that Tompkins fell early on their side. Even though the Falcons entered the playoffs with only one loss through the regular season, ranked No. 1 in the state in Class 6A and No. 10 nationally, Ridge Point was undeterred. Unfazed.
The Panthers proved as much Friday evening, finishing off the vaunted Falcons with a shocking sweep of their Class 6A regional quarterfinals. Almost exactly 24 hours after Ridge Point rallied from down 1-0 with no runners on base and two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning to pull out a cinematic 2-1 Game 1 win, it responded demonstratively in Game 2, jumping out to a seven-run lead before holding on for a 9-7 win at Tompkins High.
“We love this,” said Panthers senior Justin Vossos, who had two RBIs in the Game 2 win. “We saw the bracket come out and we wanted to play them. We want to play the best. We worked hard like we know how to do, and we believed. We believed we could beat them. We came out and played our baseball and obviously it showed.”
RIDGE POINT!! Panthers sweep the No. 1 state-ranked Tompkins Falcons, take Game 2 9-7 to advance to regional semifinals. txhsbaseball @FBISDAthletics @RP_PantherPride @RPHS_Panthers @6ABASEBALL @RGAPMobileLivepic.twitter.com/UIaKpx9Nw5— VYPE Houston (@VYPE Houston) 1653102991
The Panthers (31-4) advance to play Pearland in next week’s regional semifinals. Ridge Point is eyeing its second state tournament appearance in three seasons, not including the 2020 campaign shortened by COVID-19.
‘They’ll have the momentum,” coach Clint Welch said of his boys. “They’re hungry now. That will take care of itself.”
Tompkins pitchers struggled with command. Of the 141 pitches thrown between seniors Solomon Rotberg and Michael De Battista, and junior Ty Dagley, only 79 were strikes (56 percent).
The Falcons walked seven Panthers, and it was lack of command that ended the evening abruptly for starter Rotberg, forcing Tompkins to go to its bullpen after 1 1/3 innings.
Ridge Point did not get much offensively going until the sixth inning, when three straight walks from De Battista to start the frame ultimately resulted in six runs, keyed by Vossos’ two-run RBI double, Travis Vlasek’s second RBI single of the game, and Carter Groen’s two-run double that plated the eighth and ninth runs that turned out to be decisive.
The Panthers scored nine runs off seven hits.
“With the wind blowing out, we knew to stay compact,” Vossos said. “Hit nice little line drives and they’ll fly. A few walks led us to good hits and good ABs, so that really helped us.”
.@RPHSBaseball senior and @AggieBaseball commit @VossosJustin talks about the Panthers\u2019 sweep of No. 1 state-ranked Tompkins with today\u2019s 9-7 Game 2 win. Vossos had two RBIs in the game. #txhsbaseball @FBISDAthletics @RPHS_Panthers @6ABASEBALL @RP_PantherPridepic.twitter.com/5CDGc570r4— VYPE Houston (@VYPE Houston) 1653104777
The Panthers, meanwhile, benefited from an admirable outing from senior Hunter Nichols. The right-hander threw six solid innings, allowing two runs on three hits while striking out eight.
“Hunter did a great job and kept them from scoring early,” Welch said. “That’s a tough team with a tough lineup. For the wind blowing out like it is, for him to only give up a couple of runs in six innings … just a phenomenal outing from him.”
Nichols’ slider was devastating. He threw his changeup and fastball for strikes. He didn’t so much blow away Tompkins’ batch of sluggers as he did thwart them with off-speed precision.
“Those guys can hit,” Nichols said. “I knew I had to make pitches to get people out. I just tried to stay humble and stay focused. It was a big game. I was able to come out effectively enough to help get us a win.”
.@RPHSBaseball senior @HunterN913 discusses the Panthers\u2019 regional quarterfinal sweep of No. 1 state-ranked Tompkins. Nichols went six innings, allowing two runs on three hits while striking out eight in the Game 2 win tonight. #txhsbaseball @RP_PantherPride @RPHS_Pantherspic.twitter.com/o1u5eeesfG— Dennis Silva II (@Dennis Silva II) 1653108565
Ridge Point scored a run in each of the first three innings to go ahead 3-0 early. Tompkins got within 3-2 in the third inning and did not threaten again until the bottom of the seventh, down 9-2.
Against Ridge Point’s dynamic freshman left-handed closer Jack McKernan, a University of Texas commit, the Falcons quickly strung together five runs on four soft hits, walking twice and getting hit by pitches twice. It was the offensive prowess many had been expecting from Tompkins all series long.
But after a balk was called on Nichols, which Welch said he didn’t quite understand why, McKernan got Cash Russell to fly out to right fielder Owen Farris to hand Tompkins its third loss in 31 games.
In Game 1, it was Ridge Point’s bats that were clutch with two outs, especially Groen’s walk-off two-run single. In Game 2, it was the rookie McKernan fighting through tough calls on balls-strikes and a balk. It was McKernan’s strikeout on five pitches of Falcons power hitter and Texas A&M signee Jace LaViolette, a probable early pick in this summer’s Major League Baseball draft, that will leave an impression.
“We have a bunch of guys that compete,” Vossos said. “They come out here, work their (butt) off in practice. Everyone wants that big moment.”
Ridge Point baseball.VYPE Media
Welch said there are similarities between this year’s Panthers and those 2019 state finalists.
“One is that they all get along well, and you’ve got to have that,” Welch said. “You can’t have cliques within your team. We have guys that all contribute to the team in some way. They all get along. They’re all rooting for one another, rather than hoping a guy doesn’t get a hit so that they can get in. We don’t have guys that do that. We have guys that mesh well together.”
Sky-high confidence. A thickened bond. And self-assurance and trust on the field, at the plate and on the mound.
“We’re going to stick to what we’ve been doing and stay true to ourselves,” Nichols said. “Play baseball the way we know.”
HOUSTON – This was the kind of game that Deer Park needed.
Amy Vidal knew her teams’ psyche had been affected in the last two playoff series, both being best-of-three, which the Deer had lost the openers in and had to fight back and win back-to-back games to advance.
Heading into the Region III-6A Semifinal facing Seven Lakes, there was no room for mistake. A stumble in game one, there was no game two and three to make a comeback.
“It forced us to make us to do something that was uncomfortable, and I think we responded well to it,” Vidal said.
Emma Overla, Lorelei Graham and Lindsey McKnight homered, Reanna Nieman and Madison Applebe combined to throw a no-hitter and Deer Park rolled past Seven Lakes 10-0 in the Region III-6A Semifinals at Summer Creek on Friday night.
The win advances Deer Park to the Region III-6A Championship for a second-straight season and moves their record to 38-4 overall.
“After those three-game series where we didn’t do well in the first game, playing in this first game well was a statement to everybody in the playoffs right now,” Graham said. “We’re a force to be reckoned with.”
The Deer struck first with RBI infield singles in the second and third inning to take a 2-0 lead. Deer Park made it 4-0 off Overla’s homer in the fourth inning.
BOOM 💥: @DeerPark_SB gets the big swing from Emma Overla (@emmabrooke_5) as the @ETBU_Softball commit crushes a 2-run bomb to left and it is 4-0 Deer middle 4th inning. #txhssoftball @DPISD @KPRC2RandyMc @KPRC2Chancellor @MadisonApplebe @erinperez_ @MaddyBailey32 @KaylaZaid1 pic.twitter.com/xDeDTR9lCc
— VYPE Houston (@vypehouston) May 21, 2022
While the Deer Park bats were providing the offense, Nieman was shutting down and shutting out Seven Lakes, which was in its first Regional Semifinal since 2016. Once Nieman’s night was done Applebe came in and slammed the door with a final couple of flawless innings.
The Deer Park one-two punch no-hit and shutout a team that hadn’t been since April 1 and had manufactured 32 runs in eight playoff games.
“I feel like teamwork is the dreamwork,” Nieman said. “I couldn’t ask for anyone better to come in behind me and perform how she did.”
Vidal added: “They responded to the call. We had to change some things up a little bit because we feel like everyone is expecting one or the other. I think they have handled everything I’ve asked and have handled it well.”
Region III-6A 🥎 Semifinal Update: @UCF_Softball commit @MadisonApplebe with a swinging K to end the 6th … @DeerPark_SB up 9-0 on Seven Lakes heading to the 7th. @CoachBallMalone @UCFKnights @KPRC2RandyMc @erinperez_ @KaylaZaid1 @dpisdathletics @emmabrooke_5 @KPRC2Ari pic.twitter.com/TYv6iRttLl
— VYPE Houston (@vypehouston) May 21, 2022
For Deer Park offensively, the 10 runs marked the fourth time these playoffs that the Deer have scored in double digits.
Now, Deer Park awaits the winner of the Katy-Pearland series, which is set to conclude on Saturday. The Deer know they have another “big series to win” before they even start talking about returning to the UIL State Softball Tournament.
The reining Class 6A State Champions checked off a few boxes on Friday night, the biggest besides getting back to the Regional Championship – winning a one-game series.
“We had preached all year long that at some point you have to win one game,” Vidal said. “I think it was for our kids. It was good all around.”
WOW!!! @DeerPark_SB left fielder Loreli Graham with an AMAZING diving catch to secure second out of the 3rd! #txhssoftball @dpisdathletics @KPRC2RandyMc @MaxPreps @SCNext @KPRC2Ari @KPRC2Chancellor @KaylaZaid1 @MadisonApplebe @HTownHSS @ESPNAssignDesk @espn @erinperez_ @DPISD pic.twitter.com/DeJDBltu7B
— VYPE Houston (@vypehouston) May 21, 2022
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