Belton fights hard, falls to Corsicana in bi-district final; Krueger announces retirement

By Tony Adams

The Belton Tigers baseball team began its playoff season last Thursday as they took on the Corsicana Tigers in the Texas UIL Class 5A-Division bi-district best-ofthree series at Bosque River Ballpark at McLennan Community College in Waco.

In a three-game series that was not void of excitement, gamesmanship, and good baseball, Corsicana outlasted Belton in the series, two games to one.

Corsicana took game one, 6-3 in eight innings. Belton won game two 9-7. Corsicana took home to the series-winning game, 10-5.

Belton trailed Corsicana 2-0 in the bottom of the sixth in the opener when Austin Wood walked, and Jacob Quigley doubled to set up Cole Haisler’s game-tying triple. Heisler scored on a passed ball during Oakley Torres’ at-bat to put Belton up 3-2.

Heisler retired one batter in the top of the seventh before a walk to Josh Portillo and double by Jordan Tamez set up Trenton Bruton’s RBI ground out to tie the game at 3-3.

Trey Garcia took over for Heisler on the hill in the eighth inning. He struck out Sean Medrano to start the inning. Gabe Edgar singled, Blake Phillips was hit by a pitch, and both runners were moved up a base on the sacrifice bunt by Conner Perkins. After an intentional walk to Easton Autrey, Portillo drew a bases-loaded walk to give Corsicana the lead. Phillips scored on a passed ball and Autrey scored on an error to put Corsicana out front, 6-3.

Quigley was hit by a pitch with two outs in the bottom of the eighth, but was stranded on base as Corsicana took the series lead.

Portillo and Tamez each had two hits, and Portillo and Bruton each drove in two runs.

Isaiah Miranda pitched six innings, allowed three runs on two hits, struck out five and walked two. Autrey picked up the win in relief, struck out six, hit a batter, and walked one over two innings.

Heisler pitched seven innings, allowed three runs on six hits, walked six, struck out five, and hit two batters. Garcia took the loss in relief, allowed three runs on one hit, hit one batter, walked three, and struck out one.

Belton jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning of game two, when Garcia’s single scored Heisley, and Torres scored on a wild pitch.

Bruton’s bases-loaded walk against Quigley in the bottom of the first cut the margin to one going into the top of the second.

In the bottom of the second, Autrey’s RBI double, an errant pickoff throw scored Autrey, and Bruton’s RBI groundout put Corsicana up 5-2.

Billy Young’s sacrifice fly in the third inning scored Torres to cut the deficit to two runs.

Corsicana scored on an RBI double by Autrey and Phillips hit bases-loaded pitch to give Corsicana a 7-3 lead.

Pecos Smith’s RBI double in the fifth inning scored Gage Flores to start a string of six runs over the next two innings. Flores’ sacrifice fly scored Heisler, Smith drew a bases-loaded walk, Wood’s two-run double scored Peoples and Young to give Belton the lead, and Smith scored on a balk to give Belton a 9-7 advantage.

Torres led Belton with three hits and three runs scored. Haisler and Garcia each scored twice, and Wood and Smith each drove in two runs.

Quigley pitched 3 1/3 innings, allowed seven runs on five hits, issued eight walks, hit a batter, and struck out four. Jose Rangel picked up the win in relief, allowed two hits, hit three batters, walked one and struck out one.

Autrey led Corsicana with two hits and three runs batted in.

Belton took another early lead, this time in game three. Torres’ fielder’s choice scored Wood and Rayshawn Peoples’ bases-loaded walk to give Belton a two-run lead.

Corsicana’s four-run second gave them the lead. Autrey’s RBI single, Tamez was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, and Bruton singled home Jaxon McGraw.

Wood’s RBI single in the bottom of the third scored Peoples to clip the deficit back to one run.

The three-run fourth inning managed to be the difference in the final game. Bruton doubled in Portillo and Maverick Dill’s tworun single score Bruton and Gabe Sodd put Corsicana up 7-3.

Belton scored twice in the bottom of the fifth inning as Wood’s RBI single brought home Peoples and Quigley’s single scored Will Shepard.

Corsicana posted two runs in the sixth and one more in the seventh created the five-run final margin.

Six different Belton players collected hits, with Wood having collected two RBI.

Garcia pitched 3 2/3 innings, allowed seven runs on six hits, walked five, hit four batters, and struck out three. Young pitched 3 1/3 innings, allowed three runs on four hits, and hit three batters.

Perkins pitched 4 2/3 innings, allowed five runs (two earned) on six hits, walked five, and struck out four.

Brody Dobbs struck out three batters and walked two over two innings of relief.

“It was a tough, hardfought series,” Belton head coach Mark Krueger said. “Our guys fought back when their back was against the wall.”

In the series, Corsicana was hit by pitches 14 times to Belton’s three. Corsicana crowded the right-handed batter’s box on the inside part of the plate to take away Belton’s ability of pitch inside.

Belton had a record of 16-12, with a second-place finish in District 16-5A and a bi-district final appearance.

The third game of the series was the final one of the high school careers of Gage Flores, Trey Garcia, Cole Heisler, Rayshawn Peoples, Jose Rangel, Collin Sallee, and Austin Wood.

Coach Mark Krueger announces retirement

After the game, Belton head coach Mark Krueger announced his retirement to the team during their post season meeting at Bosque River Ballpark.

He was a Belton assistant baseball coach for 22 seasons, which included the 1994 Class 4A State Championship team, before being promoted to head coach in July 2016. Krueger won 157 games over nine seasons.

His retirement breaks the direct lineage of players and coaches linked to the team from 1994.