Berkeley Narrowly Pulls Ahead of Fairfield 11-13 in Game 1

Despite strong early innings from both defenses, offense dominated from the 4th onward for a high-scoring game and an exciting finish .

The Inaugural game of the Tip Time Baseball Association

Fairfield impressed in the first inning with starting pitcher Matthew Sek confidently striking out the side on only 14 pitches, consistently challenging batters in the zone and only throwing two called balls. Berkeley sent out starting pitcher Justin Wong who, after a quick groundout to start the inning, gave up a commanding solo homerun to Mark Go before retiring the next two batters with strikeouts.

Sek records a strike for the first pitch of the game (left) and Go scores the first run with a solo HR (left)

Berkeley's bats woke up in the second, starting off with a single from Dylan Sachao and a drawn-out battle of a walk from Joseph Gutierrez before Anthony Hartmann batted them in for two runs with a single. A pickoff tag by Kunal Singh at second and a strikeout later, Fairfield was up to bat down 1-2. After a David Rodriguez walk and an AJ Dela Cruz single, Kristín Co made contact for a sacrifice ground ball to advance them to second and third. Despite runners in scoring position, Berkeley was able to escape the jam with a strikeout and hold onto their lead going into the third.

With Mark Go coming in to relieve Matthew Sek, lead-off hitter Jonathan Delmendo hit for a single up the middle before stealing both second and third to take an aggressive scoring position. Despite a single from Ava McIlvaine in the next at bat, Delmendo wouldn't have an opportunity to take home until later in the lineup when Dylan Sachao batted him in with a single of his own. Berkeley was up 1-3 going into the bottom of the third, where they protected their lead thanks to some impressive infield plays, with a lone hit from Kunal Singh for a single. The final out was nearly an error as a pop fly from Mark Go slipped out of second baseman Joseph Gutierrez's glove but he quickly recovered, making throw to first for the out to end the inning.

Gutierrez recovers from a missed catch with a throw to first to end the inning

Matthew Sek returned to the mound for the fourth, quickly racking up strikeouts and only allowing one baserunner on a walk. Fairfield followed up their strong defensive inning with scoring 5 runs, quickly loading the bases with a mix of infield hits, walks, and a HBP (Sek) as Berkeley's Justin Wong struggled to find the zone. The bases were loaded with zero outs as Fairfield tied the game at 3-3, and three more runners found home before Berkeley escaped the inning.

At a 6-3 deficit and only two more innings to go, Berkeley sent out new addition Sariel Palad to replace Liem Nguyen in the lineup. Despite a strong hit, Sariel was thrown out at second on a close infield play. Back at the top of the lineup, Delmendo added a groundball double, followed by RBI singles from Vaughn Huelsman and Ava McIlvaine, bringing the score to 5-6. Thanks to a Joseph Gutierrez RBI double and a sacrifice groundout from Kyle Cessna, Berkeley held a slim 6-7 lead heading into the bottom of the 5th. With reliever Jonathan Delmendo taking the mound, Fairfield started strong with a single from Mark Go and another walk for David Rodriguez (his third of the day). Ronald Fernando batted them both in on a double before Delmendo struck out the remaining batters, leaving Fairfield up 8-7 heading into the final inning.

The top of the 6th left Berkeley down one, going into a relatively untested segment of their order, starting with Justin Wong, whose only hit on the day was a weak groundball that allowed him to reach on error. Following Wong in the order were Natalie Musick and Sariel Palad, who had both shown flashes of promise but had combined for zero hits on the day. If all three hitters failed to get on base, Fairfield would walk it off before Berkeley could even get a chance to send out their hottest bat in Jonathan Delmendo. With these stakes in mind, Wong built up to a full count against relief pitcher Mark Go before squeezing a hit between defenders and taking the single. Musick stepped into the batter's box and hit a ground ball to advance Wong to second before being thrown out by an inch. A Sariel Palad double batted in a run, tying the game at 8-8 to avoid the walk-off and keep Berkeley alive. Berkeley ended up batting a round, sending in an additional 5 runners before Musick grounded out on her second at bat of the inning to end it. The score was 8-13 headed into the bottom of the sixth. Despite the five run lead Berkeley was on edge, having just given up five runs in quick succession only two innings prior. They sent reliever Jonathan Delmendo to the mound and Rachele Reyes came into the batter's box.

Battle in the Bottom of the Sixth

Reyes wasted no time, taking base with a single off the first pitch of the inning, immediately putting the pressure on Delmendo and the defense. Mark Go stepped into the box having already tallied four hits on the day, including the game's only homerun. Unsurprisingly, Go landed safely on first after punching a line drive through the gap, advancing Reyes to second. A Matthew Sek single resulted in an out at third while David Rodriguez stepped up to the plate sporting a 1.000 OBP for the day. A single up the right side from Rodriguez safely scored Go, cutting Berkeley's lead to 4. With one out and runners on first and third, Ronald Fernando was up to bat. A mound visit between starter Justin Wong and Jonathan Delmendo seemed to discuss a pitching change, but Delmendo stayed in to face the previous game's MVP. After building up a hitter's count, Fernando took an aggressive stance and swung hard on an off-speed pitch up the middle, bouncing a ground ball over second base and batting in Sek for the run while Rodriguez was thrown out at second to put the score at 10-13. With a runner on first and two outs, Berkeley opted for a pitching change to return Justin Wong to the mound off an inning and a half of rest.

Fernando's RBI single to cut Fairfield's deficit to 3 runs

AJ Dela Cruz stepped up to bat for Fairfield, with Matthew Sek pinch running for him due to a hamstring injury. A groundball up the middle was fielded cleanly by the pitcher, but the throw was too late to catch a speedy Sek on the sprint to first. With runners on first and second and only one out, Fairfield opted for another substitution, putting Angela Balolong as a pinch runner for Dela Cruz - allowing two-way star Matthew Sek to take the plate to represent the tying run. After a couple slow pitches, Fernando safely stole third to take a more aggressive scoring position, and Sek battled to a full count before drawing a walk to load the bases. With two outs, bases loaded, and a three run deficit, Fairfield had set up the perfect opportunity for a storybook ending: the walk-off homer to win by 1 for the home team.

Rachele Reyes battled to a full count, including a high pop fly less than a foot left of the third base foul line. She quickly turned a pitch up the middle into a line drive through the first-second gap, safely finding base and batting in Fernando to cut Berkeley's lead to two. With the bases loaded and two outs, the tying run sat with Sek on second and Reyes represented the game winning run on first. Kunal Singh stepped up to the plate and everyone seemed to instinctively know that this at bat, one way or another, would prove to be the last of the game. Singh's first swing found the ball, forcefully bouncing into the dirt half way to the mound. Pitcher Justin Wong fielded it cleanly, and after looking to first initially threw it home to catcher Vaughn Huelsman who made the force out at home to end the game. Final score: 11-13, with away team Berkeley taking game one of the series. Both teams will return to the field in October for game two, where Fairfield will look to tie up the series.

Final out made by Huelsman at home to seal the win for Berkeley (11-13)

Team Depth Charts

FAIRFIELD	BERKELEY
Rachele Reyes - RF / RF / SS	Jonathan Delmendo - SS / C / P (Relief)
Mark Go - C / 3B / P (Relief)	Vaughn Huelsman - LF / C / 3B
Max Headley - 1B / CF / 3B	Ava McIlvaine - CF / SS / LF
Matthew Sek - P (Starting) / C / 2B	Joseph Gutierrez - CF / 2B
Ronald Fernando - 2B / SS	​Kyle Cessna - 2B / C / 1B
AJ Dela Cruz - RF / CF / SS	Anthony Hartmann - C / 1B / CF
David Rodriguez - CF / 3B	Dylan Sachao - 1B / LF
Kristín Co - LF / CF	​Natalie Musick - RF / CF
Veronica Tang - SS / RF / 3B	​Justin Wong - P (Starting) / C / CF
Angela Balolong - LF / 3B / CF	​Liem Nguyen - 3B / LF
Kunal Singh - 3B / LF / 2B	Sariel Palad - CF / RF