SAN MARCOS – Palomar baseball is heading to the regional finals after a flawless second round, advancing to the SoCal regional finals.
The SoCal 3C2A bracket’s super regional round saw the Comets face off against conference rivals San Diego Mesa (24-20) and Riverside City College (31-14). The super regional round is a double-elimination round in which each team plays each other until only one remains.
May 11, SD Mesa 6 – Palomar 7
The Comets easily defeated the Olympians during the regular season, winning four out of five matchups. However, the playoffs can be a different story.
The action started early in the ball game when designated hitter TK Madera hit an RBI single to drive in catcher Carter Jorissen, who hit a two-out double to get in scoring position.
Two batters later, first baseman Drake Cobb singled, allowing Madera to score, making it 2-0 Palomar. The Comets would get more offensive contributions from Cobb, who ended the day with three hits and three RBIs.
“I was just seeing the ball well and catching barrels,” Cobb said.
Palomar’s starting pitcher, Joey Navarro, was stellar on the mound, pitching seven innings, allowing one run, and striking out six batters.
“I was amped up, these guys are in our conference, so I was ready to go,” said Navarro.
Things got scary for the Comets late in the game. Mesa scored three runs in the seventh inning and two in the eighth, making it just a one-run game.
The Comets held on and won the game, ending Mesa’s season.
“We already beat them in conference, but that doesn’t mean anything in the playoffs,” Cobb said.
May 12, Riverside 1 – Palomar 8
Riverside and Palomar faced off twice during the regular season and split the series. On May 9, the Comets hosted the first game of a best-of-three series against the Tigers to decide which team moved on to the 3C2A regional finals.
Riverside was undefeated in the postseason, outscoring their opponents 27-10 in total runs. This trend continued when Tigers’ catcher Ian Nguyen hit a solo home run off of Comets’ starting pitcher Ian Mowad in the top of the first inning.
“It’s just one pitch, one swing. You can’t let it affect you too much,” Mowad said. “I just want to compete and attack today.”
Mowad struck out nine batters throughout seven innings, shutting down the Riverside offense. Riverside’s coaching staff even accused Mowad of using a ‘foreign substance’ to enhance the ball movement on his pitches. Mowad took the accusation as a compliment.
Palomar tied the game in the fourth inning, then took a 2-1 lead in the fifth when shortstop Jacob Loving drove in Drake Cobb with an RBI single. Loving went 3-4 on the day with two RBIs
“I’m here to compete for my team, I’m not here for me,” Loving said.
Loving’s go-ahead RBI and Mowad’s authority on the mound were crucial to the Comets’ momentum going forward.
The Comets scored six runs in the sixth inning and routed the Tigers 8-1 to secure the series’ first game. With only one more victory needed to progress to the next round, the Comets looked to carry this game’s momentum to their next matchup.
“It’ll be up to them to bring the energy. We’ll see how much energy they can muster for their end game, and we’ll go from there,” Head Coach Ben Adams said.
May 13, Palomar 5 – Riverside 4.
Palomar baseball played its third game to secure its placement and advance to the regional finals. The game started off rocky, with Brandon Bollerer accidentally hitting a batter.
“I knew if I stayed imposed, I’d get out of it. I just had to lower my heart rate and do my best,” Bollerer said.
In the same inning, the Tigers scored a run, scoring 1-0.
The Comets bounced back quickly. In the second inning, they scored two runs. Braedon Peterson-Cheek was hit by a pitch, allowing another run to score for the Comets.
“My adrenaline was up, but I was able to stick in the post, because we do bunt and practice every day. That play was just kind of routine for me anyways,” Bollerer said.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Tigers batter, Parker Sobiesiak, bunted. Bollerer went to pick up the ball to throw to first base, but ended up tripping and face-planting. The Comets were down 2-4 by the end of the inning, but they rallied quickly.
In the seventh inning, designated hitter AJ Klubek hit a two-run home run to tie the game at 4-4. The match threatened to go into extra innings, but in the top of the ninth, Palomar catcher Carter Jorissen hit a sacrifice fly that brought in Peterson-Cheek for the final, game-deciding run.
“I anticipated that since their backs were against the wall, they would give us their best self and effort. And we just had to ensure we could withstand it,” Head coach Ben Adams said.
The Comets have now secured their place in the regional finals, where they will play Cypress starting May 16.
“Keep doing the same thing, stay on the same track, and stay together… keep dominating on the mound and we can do something special,” Justin Tucker said.
