Bulldogs battle past Hawks in Game 3 to win bi-district series

McALLEN — The McAllen High Bulldogs had a chance to clinch their bi-district series against Harlingen South on Friday. That ended in a one-run extra innings loss and forced a Game 3 between the Bulldogs and Hawks on Saturday for a spot in the area round.

In Game 3 on Saturday, McHi battled its way to a 7-2 win over Harlingen South to take the three-game series 2-1 and set up a second round playoff matchup against La Joya Palmview. Area Round details are to be determined.

McHi improves to 20-12 on the year while Harlingen South’s season ends at 20-10-2.

“Our kids played well. Fernie (Olivarez) had a good outing and kept us in the game. We scored some runs there late and changed the momentum in our favor,” McHi head coach Eliseo Pompa said. “The kids have been around for a while and they know how to win. Harlingen South is a good ballclub. Anytime you play teams in the playoffs, you never know what to expect — sometimes you might have a good game, sometimes you might have a bad game — but our kids kept their composure the whole series and we came out on top.”

McHi plated two runs in both the third and fourth innings before tacking on three more during the bottom of the fifth for a commanding 7-1 lead.

The Bulldogs combined for 10 hits in Game 3 with Aaron Cortez, Austin Ramos and Luis Esquivel all with two hits apiece. Esquivel added two RBI and scored one run, while Ramos and Maddox Braxton had one RBI each.

Bulldogs’ pitcher Fernie Olivarez held the Hawks to two earned runs off eight hits and two walks with two strikeouts. Eric Alonzo pitched 1 1/3 innings of relief with one strikeout to close the game.

“Fernie did a good job for us today. He hadn’t gone more than four innings in about a month or so, so we just kept an eye on him and then hard Eric come in there and finish it off,” Pompa said.

Harlingen South’s Josh Ruiz led the Hawks with 2-for-4 hitting, one RBI and one run. Ayden Medrano went 2-for-2 with one walk, and Justinray Pena went 2-for-3 with one run.

The Bulldogs now shift their focus to a three-game area round playoff series against La Joya Palmview.

La Joya Palmview swept Victoria West in its bi-district series with wins of 1-0 on Thursday and 3-2 on Saturday to earn their spot in the area round against McHi.

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