Door Slams on Dodgers in 9th, 10-7 : 5-Run Nogales Outburst Ousts Valley Team From NBC Series

Just when it appeared the Valley Dodgers were in control, they lost it.

The Nogales (Ariz.) Vaqueros rallied for five runs in the ninth inning, including a game-winning grand slam by first baseman Ron Ortegon, to beat the Dodgers, 10-7, Tuesday in the National Baseball Congress World Series at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium.

The defeat eliminated the Dodgers, who won two and lost two in the double-elimination tournament. The Dodgers, who have qualified for the tournament three consecutive years, finished 11th in the 33-team tournament for the second year in a row. They finished seventh in 1986.

Nogales, 3-1 in the tournament, trailed, 7-5, entering the bottom of the ninth against Dodger right-hander Tim Quintanilla, who relieved starter Lou Skertich in the eighth. The ninth started nicely for the Dodgers when Jim Gomez grounded back to Quintanilla for an easy for out.

But Todd Rolph and Jose Pico, the Vaqueros’ Nos. 8 and 9 batters, stroked consecutive singles. After Quintanilla threw four consecutive balls to Chad Curtis to load the bases, he walked in a run when his 3-2 pitch to second baseman Fletcher Thompson missed the strike zone, cutting the Dodger lead to 7-6.

Dodger Coach Mark Morton summoned right-hander Bryan Duffy from the bullpen to face Ortegon, an all-tournament player last year with the Liberal (Kan.) BeeJays. Ortegon blasted an 0-1 pitch over the right-field fence, his second home run of the game, to send the Dodgers packing.

“One thing that has become evident in this tournament is that no lead is safe,” Morton said. “We’ve seen what happens when you can get into the other team’s bullpen and it happened to us tonight. We tried to stock our bullpen for this tournament, but obviously it didn’t work out.”

Skertich pitched 7 innings before giving way to Quintanilla, who pitched the Dodgers out of an eighth-inning jam. The Dodgers led, 7-5, when Quintanilla entered the game with a runner on second and one out. The right-hander struck out the first batter he faced and got the next to ground out.

Valley continued its torrid hitting. The Dodgers had 12 hits, including a pair of home runs by right fielder Steve Hosey. His solo home run in the second inning tied the score, 1-1, and his two-run homer in the seventh gave the Dodgers a 7-4 lead.

Ortegon’s solo homer in the eighth inning cut the Valley lead to two. Ortegon, a 21-year-old graduate of Grand Canyon College in Arizona, drove in six runs for the Vaqueros, who are making their first NBC World Series appearance.

Though disappointed with Tuesday’s loss, Morton sought consolation for a season that resulted in a 34-11 record.

“We knew coming in here that our offense wasn’t going to be a problem,” he said. “But no matter what level you’re at, it seems you’re always looking for those golden arms.

“We hadn’t had to use our bullpen much before tonight and that’s one reason we had some success.”

Albert Kolesar, who was 9 for 14 in the tournament, had three hits. Corey Aurand, Lorenzo Lesky and Hosey each had two hits.

The Dodgers had advanced to Tuesday’s game after defeating Hays (Kan.), 13-0, Monday. Dan Penner pitched a four-hit shutout, striking out five and walking two. Penner has a 7-0 record in four NBC World Series. Aurand led the offense with three hits, including two doubles. Jeff Light, Mike Gieseke and Kolesar also had three hits for the Dodgers. Gieseke was 8 for 17 in the tournament.