Brock wins it after Diboll error, advances to UIL state baseball championship game

With the temperature hitting triple digits and not a single cloud in the sky on Friday at Dell Diamond, players from Brock and Diboll were consistently fighting the sun.

The sun gave Brock its biggest assist of the season.

Brock had the bases loaded with two outs in the bottom of the seventh and Gavin Boedeker hit a high fly to right field. The right fielder, who had sunglasses on, was under it to make the catch, but couldn’t secure it and two runs scored as Brock walked it off for the 7-6 win.

“I still don’t know how we won,” Brock head coach Tim Arden said. “The ball was hit to right and it hit his glove. I kind of glanced down and all of sudden our guys go nuts. It just shows, you never give up and you play until the end.”

The Eagles advance to the 3A state championship and will face Corpus Christi London at 9 a.m. Saturday from Dell Diamond. It’s the program’s first trip to the state final since winning its only title in 2006.

London beat Brock in last year’s state semifinals.

“Ball is hit up high, maybe the sun will catch it. Luckily he dropped it and now we have a chance to play for the state championship,” said Brock center fielder Sawyer Strosnider, who went 3 for 4.

“We were down here last year. We got beat so we’re coming for redemption now.”

After Diboll (38-5) scored in the top of the first inning, Brock (36-3) quickly responded with four runs a half inning later. Tyler Moody started the inning with a single and Strosnider followed by legging out an infield hit at second. After an error at shortstop loaded the bases, Cam Harris delivered a two-run double down the right field line to give Brock a 2-1 lead.

“Incredible and that’s what we’ve done all year,” Arden said. “When those kids get down, they respond immediately.”

Luke Stills and Ian Fuchs got back-to-back RBI sac flies and the Eagles led 4-1.

Brock extended its lead to 5-1 in the bottom of the second. After Moody got a two-out single to center, he scored one batter later on the Strosnider triple to right.

The Lumberjacks got back in the game with three runs in the top of the third. Diboll started the inning with back-to-back doubles from Carson Morales and Ty Roman to pull within 5-2.

The Jacks got a single and a walk to load the bases before the first out and starting pitcher and lead-off hitter Coby Dejesus hit a pitch that just passed the glove of a sliding second baseman to drive in a pair to make it 5-4.

Brock starter Tristan Boedeker was a workhorse and picked up back-to-back strikeouts to end the frame. Boedeker allowed four runs on seven hits in three innings. He struck out six, walked five and finished with 96 pitches.

Boedeker walked three batters in the top of the first inning, but only limited Diboll to a single run, an RBI sac fly to center. On the play, the Jacks had the bases loaded and Strosnider made a running catch that would’ve cleared the bases.

“I got a really good jump. The ball was hit hard. I put my glove out there and caught it. Made a good play, got out of the inning and then we put up four,” Strosnider said.

Boedeker would also load the bases in the second inning. Diboll got two singles and a walk with two outs, but Boedeker got a pop fly to second to end the threat.

“That was huge. All that and they got one run,” said Arden about Diboll’s first inning. “Tristan battled. He didn’t have his location today, but he pitched his tail off.”

Dusty Baker came on in the fourth and replaced Boedeker and shut down the first nine batters he faced. But he had trouble in the top of the seventh. The sun played a factor again and Diboll got two hits when high flies went into shallow right and a play couldn’t be made.

A hard hit off the Brock first baseman tied the game at 6-6 and the second fly in right scored the go-ahead run.

“It’s tough. The way the angle of the field sits, heck our kids lost it in the last inning as well,” said Arden about the sun. “But you just have to play the game and I’m so proud of our kids. They just don’t quit.”

This story was originally published June 10, 2022 at 3:31 PM.