For the first time since 2017, the Jesuit Dallas baseball team is competing for a regional title.
The Rangers punched their ticket to the Class 5A Division 2 Region 1 championship series Saturday by completing a sweep in a best-of-3 series against Midland in the regional semifinals.
With the win, Jesuit advances to face Flower Mound Marcus in regional finals at Dallas Baptist University. Game 1 is slated for 2:30 p.m. Thursday with Game 2 at 6 p.m. Friday and Game 3 at 10 a.m. Saturday, if necessary.
In Abilene, Jesuit received strong pitching performances over the weekend to sweep Midland, taking Game 1 on Friday, 10-2, before closing out the series Saturday with a 3-2 victory to improve to 6-0 in the postseason and 30-7-2 overall.
“It was a heck of a weekend for us,” said Brian Jones, Jesuit head coach. “And we were able to win in two, which is always nice. The kids played well, and we were able to do a lot of the little things that made the difference for us.”
In the Game 2 win, Jesuit received a two-run single from Roman Derichsweiler in the bottom of the fifth inning to give the Rangers a 3-2 lead they would never relinquish.
It was one of two hits on the day for the senior backstop, who improved his average to .500 on the season and increased his current hitting streak to 18 games.
Jesuit had previously opened the scoring in the bottom of the fourth when Nate Iannariello drove in Brooks Kowal with a sacrifice fly.
Jacob Martinez picked up the win on the mound for Jesuit, allowing two runs on six hits with six strikeouts in 5.2 innings.
Martinez was lifted in the top of the sixth after Midland put two runners on, but reliever Jack Lattanzio induced a grounder to get out of the jam with Jesuit still leading, 3-2, before Hudson Voss picked up the save after firing a scoreless seventh.
Runs were no issue for Jesuit in Game 1 on Friday as the Rangers pounded out eight hits in the 10-2 win.
Much of the damage came in the top of the fourth where Jesuit scored seven times. The Rangers tacked on two more in the top of the sixth and another in the seventh before Midland finally broke through in the bottom of the seventh for a pair of runs for the final margin.
James Jorgensen improved to 8-0 on the year for Jesuit, continuing his dominant form by taking a no-hitter into the final inning for the second time this postseason.
Jorgensen’s final line included 11 strikeouts on just three hits allowed over 6.2 innings before giving way to Cooper Patton for the final out.
At the plate, eight different Rangers recorded hits, with Derichsweiler leading the way with a two-run double in the fourth.
In addition to giving Jesuit a 1-0 advantage in the series, Friday’s win marked the 600th in the head-coaching career of Jones.
“We had a little dinner Friday and it was a great time,” Jones said. “It’s nothing you ever really set your sights on or think about. And if you do, you’re probably in coaching for the wrong reason. But it’s a proud moment for me and something I am happy about.
“I’m really thankful to all the teams, players, and coaches and staff I’ve worked with throughout the years. I wish I could message them all. It’s funny, I actually got a text from a kid congratulating me and he was from my first team as a head coach from 1998. It was a special moment.”
But with win No. 600 now in the bag, Jones and Jesuit will shift its focus to the regional finals and a date with a Marcus team that defeated the Rangers in three games in the area round a year ago.
“When you get to this stage, they’re all tough ones,” Jones said. “Marcus is playing some great ball. We’ll do our scouting and focus on what we control and hopefully we keep playing sound and taking care of the little things and see what happens.”
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