The Inland Valley’s Pirates and Legends met on a beautiful summer day at Cal Poly Pomona’s Scolinos Field for their last matchup of the year.
Tuesday’s game was the last league contest for the Pirates, while the Legends have one more on Wednesday before potentially qualifying to meet the Power in the playoffs.
The Legends have played well against the Pirates throughout the season, but the last time they played, the Pirates flipped the script and beat the Legends 10-0.
This matchup was the best of the year with multiple late score changes. It looked like the Legends had bested their CPCL rivals once again until the Pirates came up with a clutch hit in the ninth to seal the victory.
Costly errors at the start of the game allowed the Legends to cash in an unearned run in the first.
The Legends had a strong rally in the third behind a hard-hit RBI single from Moon Eom and a double from Sean Boscovich.
The Legends held their commanding lead until the fourth inning when the Pirates were finally able to make some noise.
A leadoff walk and error allowed Cole Koniarsky to advance to third. Anthony Vasquez then hit a fly ball to center field, prompting Coniarksy to tag up. The throw beat Coniarsky by 10 feet, but he dodged the catcher’s tag to give the Pirates their first run.
Later in the inning, with two outs, Brett Bowers hit an RBI single to center to cut the Legends’ lead to 3-2.
The Pirates began the sixth inning with singles from Coniarsky and Aidan Haller, who subsequently advanced to second and third on a fielder’s choice. With runners in scoring position, Sonny Rios hit a ground ball to the right side, allowing Coniarsky to score and tie up the ball game.
On the mound, the Pirates’ pitching leaned on the team’s momentum and put up four consecutive scoreless frames.
The Legends finally looked dangerous again in the top of the eighth after David Hays hit a leadoff double down the left field line.
It looked like the Pirates were going to get out of the jam until Doug Allen hit a single to right with two outs to give the Legends the late lead.
The Pirates battled back immediately in the bottom of the inning, with Adrian Diaz smoking a leadoff single to set the tone. Coniarsky got involved again, hitting another single to advance Diaz into scoring position.
The Legends made two quick outs but allowed the runners to advance to second and third. The Pirates needed someone to come up clutch, and Sonny Rios answered the call again, this time hitting a single up the middle to drive in two runs and give the Pirates the lead heading into the ninth.
Anthony Vasquez made three quick outs to give the Pirates a 5-4 win over the Legends.
Vasquez pitched four innings in relief, allowing only one run and earning the win.
Rios drove in three of the Pirates’ five runs and Coniarsky had three of the team’s eight hits.
The Pirates 2024 CPCL schedule is now complete, but the team will have a few more non-league exhibitions this weekend. The Legends will play a winner-take-all game against the San Diego Wave, with the winner earning a spot in the CPCL playoff.
Inland Valley Baseball Association 