THIS STORY CONTAINS INFO ABOUT: Edison, Holy Cross, East Central, Southwest, Brackenridge and Jefferson (in order)

FOR A FULL STORY ON BURBANK VS. BRENNAN baseball (April 12, 2013 @ SAISD Field No. 1), click this link:

http://www.mysanantonio.com/default/article/Burbank-boys-fall-to-Brennan-9-6-4435759.php

FOR INFO ABOUT: Harlandale and McCollum, click this link:

http://www.mysanantonio.com/default/article/High-school-sports-round-up-4435787.php

 Edison

The Golden Bears (12-15-2, 8-2) tuned up for their scheduled meeting Tuesday with first-place Brennan (15-10, 9-2) by recording a pair of shutout wins in District 28-4A.

The game will take on extra meaning for Edison because it’s a Susan G. Komen For the Cure event. Former Golden Bears coach Mary Ann Villarreal, for whom the SAISD softball complex is named, died of breast cancer.

“It’s going to be an unbelievable game,” Edison coach Aimee Silva said. “It’s the first annual Pitch for the Cure. It’s a special game for us, but we have to be focused on the task at hand. That’s the most important thing – but it’s just a special day.”

Edison defeated Brackenridge (12-15-1, 6-4) 3-0 April 9 and Burbank (6-16, 3-7) 10-0 last Friday. Both games were played at Mary Anne Villarreal Field No. 2.

Golden Bears junior Celeste Vela pitched a two-hitter against Burbank. She escaped a bases-loaded jam in the fourth inning with a strikeout on a 3-2 count. In the fifth, the Bulldogs had runners at first and third with two outs when Edison snuffed out a stolen base attempt.

“Celeste made some big pitches,” Silva said. “That’s what we’ve been doing the second half (of district season), which really helps. We’ve been eliminating a lot of the errors and mistakes we were making in the first round. That’s the key.”

Edison rallied for five runs in the third inning in a rally sparked by a leadoff walk to Brittany Salinas, followed by April Escobedo’s single. The Golden Bears put the game to bed via the 10-run rule with a four-run rally in the fifth. Vela produced an RBI single, Denise Vasquez drove in two runs with a double and Amber Pacheco added the 10^th run with an RBI base hit.

“Our bats have woken up,” Silva said. “That’s going to be a big thing for us, once we get into the playoffs. We need to be consistent every at-bat. When we have runners on second and third base, we have to score runs.”

The loss eliminated Burbank from playoff consideration. The Bulldogs finished the week in fifth place.

Vela also limited Brackenridge to three hits, spread over eight innings. Neither team scored through the first seven innings. Vela struck out eight in the win.

Edison, which finished with six hits, won on the strength of three unearned runs against Brack sophomore pitcher Alexis Berlanga. Berlanga walked none and struck out six. Jennifer Castillo, Berlanga and freshman Miranda Sandoval accounted for the Eagles’ hits.

Tuesday’s contest will be the final game of the regular season for Brennan. Edison will face Jefferson (12-14-1, 6-4) Friday in the district season finale at Villarreal Field No. 2 (7:15 p.m.).

Holy Cross

The Knights (20-12-2) began postseason play with a 10-0 shutout victory over Corpus Christi Incarnate Word last Saturday in the TAPPS 3-4A Tournament.

Knights junior Julia Ibarra pitched a three-hitter at Holy Cross.

Holy Cross got off to a great start, taking a 5-0 lead in the first inning and tacking on two more runs in the second. In the sixth, the Knights ended the game with a three-run rally.

East Central/Southwest

East Central (19-10, 7-2) and Southwest (28-5, 7-2), No. 3 in the Express-News area rankings, maintained their first-place tie heading into the final day of the District 28-5A season Tuesday.

Southwest was set to finish at Steele (17-11, 5-4). East Central, ranked No, 10, was to finish with a home game against Corpus Christi King (21-10, 5-4). King and Steele are tied for third place.

East Central edged Steele 3-2 April 9 and defeated South San (9-18, 1-8) 7-0 last Friday

Hornets sophomore pitcher Madison Strunk threw a one-hitter at South San. East Central scored three runs in both the third and fourth innings to put the game out of reach.

Against Steele at East Central, junior pitcher Taylor Doege limited the Knights to five hits. Steele took a 1-0 lead in its half of the first inning, but didn’t score again until the fourth. East Central scored twice in the first and added a run in the second for a 3-1 advantage.

Southwest trounced Corpus Christi Carroll 16-8 April 9. The Dragons led by six runs before King last Friday. They secured a 13-3 victory. Both games were played at at Cabaniss Field in Corpus Christi.

Against King, the Dragons hammered five hits in the first inning. After the Mustangs closed within 6-3 in the third, Southwest pushed across five runs in the fourth and two more in the fifth to invoke the 10-run rule. Freshman pitcher Caitlin Terrazas limited King to five hits and two earned runs, walking one and striking out four.

Junior Kamarie Vidales led Southwest’s 13-hit attack with a home run, her sixth of the season. Gabby Flores added a double and Samantha Hernandez belted a triple.

Against Carroll (13-19, 2-6), junior Elizabeth Phillips (RBI) hit a triple and senior Miranda Medina (RBI) slugged her ninth home run of the season. The Dragons produced 19 hits.

Sophomore Krystal Salinas went 4-for-5 with 4 RBIs. Vidales was the winning pitcher and helped herself with a 3-for-4 performance at the plate that included two doubles. Samantha Hernandez, Amanda Sanchez (RBI), Yanira Fernandez (2 RBI), Destinee Gonzales (2 RBI) and Terrazas (double, RBI) all drilled two hits.

Brackenridge/Jefferson

Brackenridge recovered from its loss to Edison to defeat Jefferson11-7 last Friday and force a tie for third place.

In a game of twists and turns, Brackenridge took the lead for good. with a six-run outburst in the sixth inning. It came in response to a four-run fifth that had given the Mustangs the lead. Berlanga kept Jefferson scoreless in the last two innings.

A first-inning double from Sandoval and a key second-inning single from Allie Castillo helped Brack build a 4-1 lead. Genesis Porado was safe on an error, Melanie Ybarra delivered a single and Grace Chavez folllowed with a double to fuel Jefferson’s fifth inning.

A bunt single got the Eagles started in the sixth. A single by Sandoval loaded the bases and two runs came in on a fielder’s choice with Lexus Lozano at the plate. Tied 7-7, two Jefferson errors led to four more Brackenridge runs.

The Mustangs were scheduled to play Burbank Tuesday and finish against Edison Friday. The Eagles were to play Lanier (5-17, 1-8) Tuesday and Highlands (7-18, 2-8) Friday at Villarreal Field No. 1.