Eagles edge rival Mesa

Estancia High Coach Matt Sorensen said the Eagles were put in a dream situation to win their Orange Coast League baseball game against rival Costa Mesa Thursday. For the Mustangs it ended like a nightmare at Estancia.

The Eagles won in dramatic fashion, scoring with two outs and the bases loaded to edge Costa Mesa, 7-6.

Junior catcher Brody Pearce drew a walk on four straight pitches to bring in Andres Hernandez for the game-winning run. Costa Mesa tied the score, 6-6, in the top of the seventh and hoped to extend the game by bringing in senior pitcher Tyler Sheffner.

With two outs, Sheffner took a hard hit to his right pitching arm. Sheffner was taken to a local hospital, Costa Mesa High Coach Jim Kiefer said. His status was unknown late Thursday night, Kiefer said.

The Eagles (5-5, 2-2 in league) drew a walk in Sheffner’s absence. With runners on first and third, Kiefer called to intentionally walk Victor Trujillo, loading the bases. Sorensen said Trujillo has fared well against the Mustangs (6-5, 2-3) in the past.

“They stayed in the game,” Sorensen said of the Mustangs, who rallied from a 5-2 deficit. “We had some opportunities to put them away, but couldn’t. They competed and took advantage of our mistakes. Coach Kiefer called a great game. It was a battle. It was exciting with a big crowd there.

“It was just good for the City of Costa Mesa baseball. It was a fun game to be a part of even though it wasn’t well executed.”

Hernandez was two for four with a double, while Tyler Rios was one for four with a double and a run batted in. Trujillo was one for two with an RBI. Alex Trancoso was two for four, Steven Macias was one for three and an RBI, Trujillo was one for two with an RBI, Pearce was one for two with two RBIs and Jesse Paz had one RBI for Estancia.

“Both teams were battling, it definitely could’ve gone either way,” Kiefer said. “We did a good job of rallying from a 5-2 deficit. We brought Tyler in and he did fine and we thought we could extend the game. But that injury kind of shook everyone up.

“We’ve had some tough losses, a bounce here and a bounce there and maybe we win. But I think our kids will survive and bounce back.”

Junior Austin McCardle went two for four with two doubles and two RBIs, while junior Kory Bennion went three for four with an RBI for the Mustangs.

— From staff reports