Greg Jones brought Manteca back with his bat and then won the game with his eyes.

Jones went 3 for 4 with a double and five RBI, and capped his monster performance by drawing a four-pitch walk in the bottom of the eighth inning to give the Buffaloes a come-from-behind 13-12 victory.

Manteca trailed 9-2 in the fifth inning and 12-10 with two outs in the seventh.

“We showed our mettle. We proved it there. Down seven runs. We put ourselves in a pretty big hole early, and to their credit, the guys fought the whole time,” head coach Neil MacDannald said. “... That’s the biggest thing that sticks out in my mind; the drive and fortitude to somehow get it done despite the mistakes.”

Jones was mobbed by teammates near the first-base bag after reaching base for the fourth time. The victory assures the reigning Sac-Joaquin Section Division III champions will get a chance to defend their title.

Manteca, which can finish no worse than fourth in the Valley Oak League, closes the regular season with a quick two-game series with East Union on Monday and Tuesday.

While the series will have no bearing on the VOL’s playoff qualifiers — Sierra, Oakdale, Manteca and Central Catholic — the Buffaloes hope to put a little momentum in their sails.

Friday’s finish was a start.

The Buffaloes trailed 9-2 heading into the bottom of the fifth and looked like they were closer to a 10-run mercy rule defeat than victory.

Then, the ball began to find gaps in the Kimball defense.

“We never thought we were out of the game,” Jones said. “It was still early when we were down, so we knew we had time to come back.”

Manteca staged a six-run fifth inning to claw within one, 9-8. The first eight batters reached base, highlighted by three consecutive base hits by Jakes Menasco, Ronaldo Tijero and Jones.

Tijero slapped a two-run single into left field. Jones followed suit, scorching a two-run double over the bag at third base.

Jones eventually scored when A.J. Kieffaber was plunked in the back with a pitch, and Sam Rohovit made it a one-run game with a sacrifice fly to center field.

Suddenly, the Buffaloes were surging. The dugout chatter grew in intensity. The crowd leaned into the cyclone fencing, and the pitching found its foothold.

Kyle Rachels relieved struggling starter Dom Pisano in the third inning and neutralized the Jaguars’ potent attack. The freshman wasn’t expected to log many innings this season, but he’s earned the trust of the coaching staff.

Rachels gave up two runs in 3 1/3 innings, pitching to contact, and left the game with a 10-9 lead.

“The kid’s very efficient. You won’t see him issuing too many free passes and he keeps the ball down,” MacDannald said. “For a freshman, he’s an extremely smart baseball player. ... It wasn’t our plan, to be honest, when we brought him up to throw him too much. But when he’s had the opportunity, he’s done nothing but shine.”

Manteca jumped into the lead in the sixth inning on an RBI single by Jones that scored Menasco (2 for 5, three runs) from second base. Tijero trotted home two batters later when Rachels was beaned with the bases loaded.

The advantage wouldn’t last long in this game of wild momentum swings. Kimball roughed up Manteca’s Devin Sullivan for three runs in the seventh inning to take a 12-10 advantage.

Nate Hendricks swatted two-run double into right field and later scored on a throwing error.

Down to its final three outs, Manteca showed its mettle once again, forcing extra innings with a two-out rally. Tijero (2 for 4, three runs) bounced a double off the base of the right-field wall and scored on an infield single by Jones.

Jones advanced to second on the throw and plated the tying run on a single to center field by Tyler Graves-Kelso, who also reached bases four times.

“It wasn’t a game that will win any beauty contests, but bottom line is we found a way, and especially the way it happened,” MacDannald said. “Usually when a team is down big, they come back and then they kind of run out of gas. The fact that, in the bottom of the seventh, we were down two runs with two outs and somehow we tie up again? That’s more impressive in my mind than the (six-run rally).”

Manteca’s eighth-inning rally was sparked by pinch-hitter Jonathan Murillo, who drew a lead-off walk. Rohovit came on as a pinch-runner and moved into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt. He took third on a passed ball.

After walks to Pisano (intentional) and Tijero loaded the bases, Jones stepped into the box brimming with confidence.

Instead of winning the game with his bat – and taking a mighty cut at a 3-0 pitch he was certain would be fat — he showed his budding plate discipline.

He took the walk, leaving the lumber on his shoulder, and celebrated the walk-off his teammates.

“I had to take it,” Jones said. “It won us the game.”



East Union 7,
Weston Ranch 4

In Stockton, East Union did its part, completing a series sweep of Weston Ranch.

The Lancers’ playoff hopes, however, were dashed by Central Catholic’s 3-1 victory over Oakdale across the county. The win secured no worse than a No. 4 seed for the Raiders, while rendering East Union’s crosstown tilt with Manteca on Monday and Tuesday meaningless.

Still, the Lancers (5-7, 6-16) put together a complete effort in dispatching the Cougars (4-8).

Gabe Chavez anchored Friday’s victory with a double, two-run triple and two runs as East Union gave starter Lucas Garcia plenty of run support. Garcia went the distance, allowing two earned runs on six hits. He struck out two and walked one.

He helped his own cause, too, going 2 for 3 with a double and an insurance run in the seventh.

Joe Souza also had two base hits and Marco Gonzalez laced a double for the Lancers, who can catch Central Catholic in the standings, record-wise. The Raiders own the first tiebreaker – head-to-head – by virtue of their sweep of East Union.



Ripon Christian 5, Denair 0

In Denair, Danny Vander Molen struck out 17 and Willem Hoekstra drove in two runs as Ripon Christian won its fourth straight game. The playoff-bound Knights (9-3, 16-4) now sit comfortably in third place in the Southern League standings, and can catch Orestimba (10-2) with a victory Monday and an Orestimba loss to league champion Mariposa.