Wilson Falls In First Round At Fullerton – The562.org

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The562’s coverage of Long Beach Wilson Athletics is sponsored by Joel Bitonio, Class of 2009.

It seemed like everything was working against Wilson in the first round of the CIF Southern Section Division 3 playoffs on Thursday.

Despite winning a share of the Moore League title for the first time since 2017, the Bruins had to go on the road for their postseason opener, their bus was late causing a delay in the start time, and waiting for them was the Empire League champs Fullerton. Or as Wilson coach Andy Hall put it, “We ran into a buzz saw and it’s tough to overcome that in the playoffs.”

Fullerton jumped out to a four-run lead after the first inning and never looked back on its way to a 8-2 win over Wilson.

“It’s a bittersweet way to end the season, but there’s a lot of good things that we can take away from this season and today,” Hall said. “They were just good kids and they pulled for each other and stuck together. It’s really hard to put into words right now. “

Wilson senior Ben Howard got the start and recovered quickly after the first inning. He pitched into the sixth inning while giving up 12 hits and a walk.

Howard was the best pitcher in the Moore League and said after the game that he will remember the entire journey with Wilson baseball.

“I remember that first practice (as a freshman team) at Whaley Park and just growing up (with the fellow seniors),” Howard said. “These four years of high school have been very meaningful. They’ve taught me a lot and they’ve been there for me every step of the way.. Even though we lost, we are Moore League champions.”

Senior first baseman Rudy Carlos has been the catalyst for the offense this season and got Wilson on the board in the fourth inning. He led off with a single and would score on Howard’s RBI single.

“He’s a warrior,” Hall said of Carlos. “He carried this team as the Moore League Co-MVP. One of the things that I really like about Rudy in addition to his offense, is how much better he got defensively over the course of the last two years. He was really good with the glove, especially down the stretch this year. We’re going to miss him. He’s meant a lot to this program in three years on Varsity.”

The Bruins had the bases loaded with one out in the top of the fourth, but Fullerton pitcher Declan Fitzgerald got two strikeouts to escape the jam. The junior pitched six innings while scattering six hits and four walks. He struck out eight.

Fullerton quickly padded its lead in the bottom of the fourth inning to make it 6-1 and Wilson wouldn’t score again until the seventh inning when Adrian Marquez hit a solo home run in his last high school at bat.

It was an emotional postgame talk from the Wilson coaches after the loss, and Carlos was the last one to leave the field.

“I’ll always remember the fun times we had joking around while playing as hard as we can,” Carlos said. “I’m going to miss these guys. These are my boys. We’ve been together for four years and it felt like my whole life. It’s been a great time with them.”