Bulldog baseball offense comes to life in a heartbreaking loss to top-ranked team

Ramona baseball finished its tournament season by losing two games in the North County Tournament.

The sixth-ranked Bulldogs lost a heartbreaker on the road to No. 1 ranked La Costa Canyon on the road. The Dawgs lost to 15th ranked Torrey Pines at home. Ramona will enter Valley League action with an 11-5 record.

Cody Willingham went the first five innings against Torrey Pines and got his first loss of the season. Willingham (4-1) gave up five earned runs on six hits, two home runs. He struck out seven. Jason Snodgrass finished on the mound and pitched two innings of shutout ball. He gave up one hit and fanned one.

Ramona outhit the Falcons but only had one run on 10 hits. Torrey Pines pitchers Joey DeNato and Reed Mason struck out 12 Bulldogs.

Shea Bailey drove in Ramona’s lone run in the second inning. Beau Sulser doubled and with two outs Bailey singled him home.

Brady Wilson, Sulser and Bailey each had two hits in the game. Jackson Willeford, Blake Drake, Kyle Gray and Michael Scodellaro also had one hit each for the Dawgs. The Dawgs defense turned two double plays and committed one error.

La Costa Canyon looked like the best team in the county for four innings. The Mavericks held Ramona to one hit and jumped out to a 9-0 lead.

Then the Bulldog offense came to life. Ramona got six straight hits in the fifth inning. Wilson led off with a double, his first of four hits on the day. Jackson Willeford singled, Smiley lined a two run double to right field. Sulser singled. Drake ripped an RBI single Gray hit an RBI double in the right-center gap.

James Nicholson drove in Gray with a fielder’s choice and suddenly it was a 9-5 game.

Wilson opened the sixth inning with a single. Jackson Willeford legged out an infield hit. Smiley drove in Wilson with a single. Sulser singled.

Drake stroked an RBI single. Gray delivered a two-run double. Nicholson ripped a two-run double and the Dawgs led 11-9.

Bailey singled. Zach Adamos reached on a fielders choice and Wilson singled to load the bases.

Jackson Willeford then hit what appeared to be a sacrifice fly, but Adamos was erased at third trying to advance on the fly ball before Bailey crossed the plate. The double play ended the inning.

“We really fought hard and scored 11 runs in two innings against the number one team in the county,” said Ramona coach Dean Welch. “We left it all on the field. It was a tough loss but I am proud of our effort.”

Erik Ernst sent three innings plus and gave up nine runs, eight earned, on five hits. He walked eight and struck out one.

Snodgrass went the final two and two thirds innings and gave up three runs on five hits and he struck out three and took the loss. Snodgrass was the victim of some very bizarre hops in the outfield that turned two singles into doubles and two runs.

Ramona enters Valley League action with the best record in the league.

Oceanside High School has the only other winning record in the league. The Pirates are 9-6. Valley Center is 6-9. Mt. Carmel is 3-10. Orange Glen is 4-5. San Marcos is 4-10 and Westview is 5-9.

All of the teams have been playing teams in higher divisions and have lost some tough games. Westview lost three of its first six games by one run to quality teams.

The Dawgs have a good chance of winning their last Valley League crown as they move up to the Palomar League next season.