Controversial Call Halts McNair in Narrow Loss

Losing is tough at the best of times, but McNair's 5-4 home defeat to Cross Keys was a particularly bitter pill for the Mustangs to swallow.  

Just one run separated the teams when the umpires called the game after the fifth-inning because of encroaching darkness -- and McNair's players were incensed with the decision.

McNair doesn't have floodlights, and according to Mustangs head coach Jonathan Dunton, both teams had agreed to play on.

 "It's the officials' call. Once they made a decision to call the game, it's on them," said an irate Dunton, continuing with a swipe at the officials. "I spoke to the Cross Keys coach, and he said his players could see the ball. My players could see the ball, but the officials were ready to go. I just think it's a sad state of umpiring in high school baseball."

Cross Keys starter Carlos Raygoza shut the Mustangs out for the opening three innings to pick up his team's first win of the season.

"I'm very excited about my first varsity win," said first-year Cross Keys coach Anwar Heard, whose team was almost 30 minutes late arriving at McNair. "Any win is a confidence boost."

The Indians scored their first four runs in the third inning. With two out, leadoff hitter Jonathan Estevez singled aboard and reached second base on a wild pitch from McNair starter Damarcus Gibson.

Franklin Velasquez's single brought in the runner, and catcher Andrew Conway followed with a base hit. Next at-bat, Raygoza singled, scoring Velazquez, before Alain Oramas tripled to deep center for two more runs in a five-hit inning for the visitors. 

"We didn't play our best baseball, but rallied at the end to pull ourselves up," said Dunton. "But like I tell the boys, you've got to be consistent from the first to the seventh inning."

McNair responded with three runs in the fourth inning. Leading off, Gibson had a base hit and moved into scoring position when Tevin Whaley was hit by a pitch. Both runners pulled off the double steal, with Gibson scoring and Whaley moving to third on a wild pitch. 

Rico Langston made it 4-2 with an RBI single before a walk and Terrence Dixon base hit pulled the Mustangs to within a run.

But the Indians halted the hosts' momentum with a fifth-inning insurance run. Velazquez doubled with one out and was driven in by a Conway line drive for a 5-3 lead.

Between the inning, as conditions became progressively darker, the officials notified both teams that the game would not go into the sixth inning.

Yet the Mustangs confidently started the bottom of the fifth with a run for leadoff hitter Jamal Campbell, benefitting from three-straight errors. A grounder was dropped by the short stop, with Campbell moving to second again on a miscue before he reached home as a steal created further fielding mayhem.

Hopes of a comeback win were quickly dashed, however, as a pop fly and back-to-back grounders abruptly ended McNair's rally.