After Protest Is Upheld, Dos Pueblos Defeats First-Place Rio Mesa Twice

Dos Pueblos High believed it had a legitimate cause when it protested a one-run loss to Rio Mesa in a Channel League baseball game that was played April 5. The league’s administrators agreed and granted the Chargers a second opportunity last week, upholding the protest. So the Chargers played two contests at Rio Mesa on Tuesday and came away with two victories.

Dos Pueblos handed Rio Mesa an 11-4 loss in the scheduled game, then completed the suspended game and prevailed, 5-4. The losses left Rio Mesa 15-5 overall, 8-3 in league play and only one game ahead of Hueneme (14-6, 7-4).

The appeal stemmed from a play in a game in which Dos Pueblos (12-8, 6-5) trailed, 4-1, with two out and the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh inning. Dos Pueblos’ Cy Brunner hit a ball that was ruled a home run by one umpire, giving the Chargers a 5-4 win. But the ball actually hit the base of the fence and Rio Mesa center fielder Jamie Liddell retrieved it and threw to shortstop Dmitri Young.

Young relayed the ball toward home, where catcher Sam Garcia was fighting through a horde of celebrating Chargers who thought Brunner’s blast had ended the game. The umpires concluded that Dos Pueblos’ players had interfered and called out Richard Foley, who represented the tying run.

The teams resumed the game Tuesday with Brunner, who was credited with a double, on second and Foley at third with two out and Rio Mesa nursing a 4-3 lead. A walk to Richard Hollowell loaded the bases and Roberto Catalan’s infield single scored Foley to send the game into extra innings.

In the bottom of the eighth, Lee Speshyock doubled, went to third on ground out and scored on a single by Jason Rhode.