Box Score MONTGOMERY, Ala. - It played out like a script that would make Hollywood proud.
After having its heart ripped out in the bottom of the ninth inning Thursday night, third-ranked Faulkner trailed Vanguard (Calif.) 3-1 and its ace Sean Isaac here Friday morning into the fifth inning of the final game of the NAIA Baseball Championship Opening Round at Harrison Field. Senior catcher Mario Amaral, who had gone hitless in the Eagles' three previous games in the Faulkner Bracket, cut the margin to one with a solo home run. And then Onix Martinez, the only player in Faulkner's starting lineup who had yet to homer this season, blasted a two-run shot to give Faulkner the lead for good.
Star reliever Marco Blanchard had to leave the game an inning later with a sore arm, so on a hunch head coach Patrick McCarthy turned to left-hander Victor Arche, who hadn't thrown a meaningful pitch in almost a month. The crafty senior was spot on in two innings of work, allowing just a pair of hits and striking out three. He then handed the ball to fellow southpaw Ivan Pelaez, who was equally efficient. When Dario Polanco ripped Faulkner's third home run of the day - a solo bomb in the bottom of the eighth - closer Austin Moreland's job was made easier in the ninth, striking out two on the way to his seventh save.
The mild celebration that followed the 5-3 victory sent the message that there was more work to be done. Faulkner's fourth straight trip to the Avista-NAIA World Series was secure, but just getting to Lewiston, Idaho, was not the Eagles' ultimate goal. Winning it for the second time in four years, especially after last year's heartbreaking close call, is the focus.
"We're excited about once again earning the right to play for a national championship," said McCarthy, whose team has now earned berths in five of the last six World Series, falling just short of its second national title a year ago. "This is a special team and one that feels they can be in the hunt. Their goal all season has been to win a national championship. They've done everything they needed to do to earn the opportunity. This is one of the most special groups I've ever coached, and I'm so happy and proud of them."
Faulkner (49-13) scored first, with Amaral's single knocking in T.J. Condon for a 1-0 lead. The Eagles threatened to add more, with runners at second and third with only one out. Issac squirmed out of it, however, getting a strikeout and a line out to end the inning.
In the top of the fourth, the Lions (40-17-1) turned to the long ball off of Lipscomb. After a sharp single from Paul Keating, Jose Rojas powered one well over the right field wall to put Vanguard on top. Two pitches later Trai Patrick did the same, this one leaving over the left-center field wall for a 3-1 advantage.
Amaral's and Martinez's dramatics in the fifth turned the tide, and Polanco's blast provided an exclamation point in the eighth.
Issac, who tossed over 120 pitches in Vanguard's opening-day victory over Texas Wesleyan, was sharp again against the Eagles, throwing another 110 on only two days rest. The two home runs in the fifth came off the talented right-hander, tagging him with the loss that ended his season at 14-3. The 14 wins is tops in the NAIA. Blanchard earned the win, improving to 5-0 on the season.
Polanco and Amaral each had two hits in Faulkner's six-hit attack, while Patrick and Brandon Sandoval had two apiece for the Lions. Making the all-tournament team for Faulkner were Polanco, Martinez, Nick Cain, Christian Torres and Mark Vasquez.
The NAIA will release the World Series bracket Saturday.
