HS Baseball Playoffs: Incredible Execution Secures A Conroe Win In The Clutch

KLEIN, TX -- The Conroe Tigers found enough gas in the tank to complete a 4-2 comeback win to defeat the Klein Collins Tigers in another historic victory that pushes the team into the Regional Semifinals.

Following two defensively oriented games to get the series to game three, both teams were looking for the knockout blow that would secure a spot in round three.

The formula for success to start game three was another strong reliance on defensive execution to keep the opposing bats at bay. Both squads trusted reliable arms to get things started on the mound, but execution in the field was paramount for Conroe in keeping the Klein Collins runners stranded.

Success in hitting down the first and third base lines saw the Collins batters stretch outfield grounders into extra-base hits that immediately applied pressure on the Conroe defense.

Klein Collins managed to push runners into scoring position in each of the first three innings, but the Conroe fielders maintained their composure under the sunlit field at Klein High School.

In an interview with The Woodlands Online Sports, Conroe Head Coach Jeff Raymer discussed the usual practice for the pitching staff and how the defense had to adjust.

“Our objective as a pitching staff is to minimize the damage,” explained Raymer. “It's not that we’re going to hold every team scoreless, but what we want to do is minimize the amount of runs they can score.”

Adding to the early stresses of the Conroe defense was a shocking lack of run support from the Tiger bats.

Noah Melendez was dealing solid pitches on the mound for Klein Collins from the very first Conroe at-bat. Persistence in relying on an outside slider kept the Conroe bats guessing with every pitch, and the lock-down fielding meant that a handful of Conroe’s runners were picked off.

The aggression on the basepath harkened back to Conroe’s Bi-District series against Aldine, where the explanation of wind playing a part in trying to stretch extra bases came to relevance in the Area Round.

“Whenever you have the wind blowing into your face, you have to find ways to produce runs,” said Raymer. “We got into some situations where we had seniors at the plate and in scoring position, and we knew that we could trust them to get the job done.”

Scoreless outings through the first three innings saw the Conroe bats get sat down in order. The lackluster hitting soon turned into desperation with a sudden crack in the Tiger defense that was taken advantage of by Klein Collins.

A lead-off out looked promising in the top of the fourth, but a follow-up single and RBI triple from the Collins bats brought in the first run of the day to break the scoreless tie.

The difficult decision was made to pull Owen Raymer following the run, but another Collins run off a double compounded the tough situation into a sudden 2-0 Klein Collins lead.

Time was running out for the Conroe offense. Continued production from Melendez on the Collins mound kept the Conroe batters at bay during the fourth and fifth innings, while Conroe reliever Sam Buzbee tried to keep the damage at a minimum for the rest of the game.

Buzbee and the Conroe defense did their job by silencing the Collins bats in the fifth and sixth, and they finally received some much-needed support in the bottom of the sixth.

The first crack in the Klein Collins defense finally showed through when a lead-off out led to three straight walks issued by Melendez to load the bases in Conroe’s favor. With the tying run in scoring position, Ed Rothlander sent a shot into the outfield where it dropped to allow the tying run to score for a 2-2 scoreboard.

The Conroe coaching staff was not satisfied with the fresh tie. Gavin Stanger entered the batter's box and laid down a bunt that stopped two feet ahead of home plate. The bunt worked perfectly with long strides from Tanner Trantham and Rothlander, who caught the Klein Collins fielders in a daze to secure two more runs before the inning was through.

“It wasn’t surprising, because that’s who this team is. They believe in each other, they believe in themselves, and they believe in us as a coaching staff,” said Raymer. “So whenever we do put in a call like that, it doesn’t surprise them.”

As the man trusted to lay down the important bunt, Stanger knew to rely on his months of practice and hard work to come through when his team needed him most.

“I knew to trust the process and to trust the work I had put in,” said Stanger. “We practice every day. We practice the double squeeze all the time, so I knew to go out there and trust my stuff.”

The air had been suddenly sucked out of Klein Collins’ sails, with three outs remianing to either tie or reclaim the lead following the late surge from Conroe.

But outfield flies could only provide faint hope that the ball might carry away from the Tiger defenders who snagged back-to-back outs in the top of the seventh. An error got one Collins runner aboard, but a grounder to short and a tag at second signaled the completion of a historic Conroe comeback.

The 4-2 Tiger win secures Conroe its first win in the second round of the state playoffs since 1989. Continued determination against long odds worked once again for comeback Conroe.

“It’s hard to put into words, it really is,” said Raymer. “If there was ever going to be a team to do it, this was the team. I’ve heard other coaches say it before, and I thought it was just coach speak. But I could tell in August that this team was different, and they kept proving it over and over.”

Up next on the docket for Conroe will be the Midway Panthers in the Regional Semifinals. With even more history to be broken if the team were to win, the continually supportive Conroe fanbase will likely be wherever they are needed to keep the dream alive for their scrappy Tigers.