Kennedy Bottoms Out in 7th, 9-8

It almost qualified as the comeback of the year.

Almost.

Kennedy High rallied to score five runs in the bottom of seventh, but stranded the tying and winning run on base, allowing San Pedro to escape with a 9-8 victory on Tuesday in a City Section Championship semifinal game at South Gate Park.

Second-seeded San Pedro (22-5-1) will play Marine League rival Carson in the final Tuesday at UCLA.

The Golden Cougars (21-4), who trailed, 8-1, after two innings, turned a blowout into a nail-biter in the final inning.

Trailing, 9-3, with two out and nobody on base in the bottom of the seventh, Kennedy rallied on two walks and four singles to score five runs.

With Karla Velasco representing the tying run at third and Ryane Montes at first, Natalie Tam struck out Antoinette DaSilva for the fourth time to end the game.

Kennedy made Tam (21-4), an excellent pitcher, look very average, rapping out eight hits, including triples by Monique Acedo and Alissa Villanueva in a two-run sixth inning.

Villanueva went three for four and Acedo had two hits.

San Pedro did most of its damage during an eight-run second inning on five hits and two errors.

“We gave them the game,” Coach Barbara Rodrigue of Kennedy said. “If we would have just played like we played all year we would have been tough [to beat].”

Montes (17-4), a freshman, allowed eight hits and struck out four.