Maidu pulls out state win in eight innings, 4-3

Through five innings of the opening game of the state tournament, Maidu Little League's Majors All-Star team led 3-1 and looked to be on their way to victory. And then they walked they walked the leadoff hitter. Walking the leadoff hitter is the one thing teams cannot afford to do and Maidu learned that they hard way, as Aptos scored two runs in the inning and tied the game at three. Fortunately for Maidu, they were about the get out of the seventh and eighth innings without allowing Aptos to score with a runner starting on second base. In the bottom of the eighth, Keith Abicht lofted a clutch two-out double to right field to score Luke Wittig from second base to give Maidu a walk-off, 4-3 win over Aptos. "Keith had his Michael Jordan/flu game moment," Maidu Manager Justin Bovolick said, referring the Jordan's performance in Game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals when he scored 38 points to lead the Bulls over the Utah Jazz. "He was under the weather and played his butt off for his brothers. He executed a bunt and walk-off double for a kid who works hard every day." Maidu advanced to the semifinal on Tuesday where they will Alpine or Petaluma National at 7:30 p.m. in Petaluma. Aptos took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first before Maidu tied it in the bottom of the second with a solo home run from Raymond Escobar. In the bottom of the third inning, Jaxon Cruz led off the inning with a home run and later in the inning Wyatt Yates, the last man in the lineup, drove in the second run of the inning with a single to give Maidu a 3-1 lead. Luke Wittig threw the first 2.1 innings and allowed four hits and struck out two before Cruz came into relieve him. Cruz pitched 3.1 innings and did well until the sixth inning, when he walked the leadoff batter, Aptos' last hitter in the lineup, and allowed a single to the next hitter. Cruz struck out the next two hitters, but a passed ball and error scored two runs to tie the game. Carter McIlnay pitched the last 2.1 innings and was magnificent, striking out four and only walking one. "Carter is a proven strike thrower," Bovolick said. "He was calm under pressure and dug deep for the boys." Bovolick was again pleased with how is team didn't blink when they gave up the lead late in the game. "We had to grind for that win," Bovolick said. "The boys didn't blink or panic. They grinded on both sides of the ball. We need to clean up a few things on defense and make people beat us."