By Dylan Butler
After toiling through six innings of frustration, Andrew Perez had the chance to erase it all with one swing of the bat.
The Townsend Harris baseball team scored all of its runs with two out off the sophomore southpaw, including a bases-loaded bloop single to give the Hawks a commanding 6-3 lead.
But all that was forgotten as Perez laced a single to left field, capping a dramatic four-run seventh-inning rally for August Martin in a thrilling 7-6 win Friday afternoon at August martin High School.
“We showed a lot of heart. We did not quit,” said Perez, who drove home Shawn Wilson from third with the bases loaded. “We just stuck together.”
Townsend Harris starter Chris Fuchs kept the Falcons’ struggling bats at bay until the seventh, allowing three runs on seven hits while striking out 10. But in the seventh, the junior hurler fatigued just a bit as his pitch count surpassed 100.
That was all August Martin needed.
After Fuchs gave up a leadoff walk to pinch hitter Eddie Young and struck out Jose Rodriguez, Josue Fernandez ripped a triple in the right-center field gap — almost beaning a stray dog — to bring August Martin (3-3 Queens South B) within 6-4.
Chris Oquendo ripped an RBI-single to right and then Wilson singled up the middle, chasing Fuchs from the mound.
“He still had a lot of zip, but he left it down the middle,” Townsend Harris coach Steve Lieberman said of Fuchs. “They just made an adjustment and put the bat on the ball.”
Shortstop-turned-reliever Nikolas Kaloudis came in and was promptly greeted by a single in right center by Luis Santiago to load the bases. Kaloudis then walked Brandon Plair to tie the game at 6 before Perez ended the game.
“We just kept the flow going from one bat to the other,” said Santiago, who pelted a single off Fuchs to bring the Falcons within 3-2 in the third inning. “We played hard all the way through.”
“I’m surprised myself,” said August Martin coach Paul Herman. “This win may turn around our season.”
Until August Martin’s dramatic rally, the story of the game was Townsend Harris’ two-out production, which was capped by John Tatti’s three-run bloop single that fell between leftfielder Rupert Wint and Fernandez at shortstop to extend the Hawks’ (8-9, 6-3 Queens Central B) lead from 3-2 to 6-2 in the fifth inning.
“It’s been like that all year, a little dink hit,” Herman said. “It would’ve been the game, but we came back and got the bats going.”
Long Island City 2, Aviation 1. Luis Herrera’s two-out bloop single in the fifth inning scored pinch runner Gerardo Canela and Alveris Rodriguez tossed a three-hitter, striking out three and walking two for Long Island City (14-8, 4-7 Queens A West).
Forest Hills 7, Robert F. Wagner 2. Daniel Bellish gave up just three hits and struck out six, while Adam Smilowitz went 2-for-3 with three RBIs for Forest Hills (12-5, 7-1 Queens B North).
Cardozo 10, John Bowne 3. Danny Rosenbluth struck out 14 for Cardozo (12-7, 6-2 Queens A East).
John Adams 8, Bushwick 3. Louie Gioppo and Jeff Batista each had two hits and three RBIs apiece for John Adams (27-2-2, 9-0 Queens A West).
Edison 12, Van Buren 1. Reule Mensche and Leo Marin each had two hits and three RBIs and Michael Gardner fanned seven for Edison (1-9 Queens A East).
Francis Lewis 4, FDR (Hyde Park) 3. Pete Stein drove in Matt Adams in the bottom of the ninth, and William Daley pitched four innings of relief to get the win for Francis Lewis (14-14).
Far Rockaway 10, Queens Vocational 9. Juan Carlos Delarosa hit a three-run double in the bottom of the sixth inning for Far Rockaway (3-4 Queens South B), which rallied from a 9-5 deficit. Delarosa also earned the win in three innings of relief.
John Adams 5, Francis Lewis 1 . Lucas Tellado pitched a complete-game two-hitter with 14 strikeouts and went 2-for-3 with three RBIs, and Carlos Guzman went 2-for-4 with two RBIs for John Adams (26-2-2, 8-0 Queens West A).
Long Island City 15, John Bowne 2. Luis Tavares struck out seven and David Mercado went 2-for-3 with three RBIs for LIC (13-8, 2-7 Queens West A).
Newtown 11, Edison 1. Godwin Almonte hurled a complete-game four-hit shutout, and Junior Ramirez went 2-for-3 with a triple and three RBIs for Newtown (2-5 Queens West A).
Aviation 17, Van Buren 1. Jonathan Bonhomme tossed a six-inning no-hitter with six strikeouts, and Jeffrey Hernandez belted a grand slam for Aviation (10-8-1, 3-6 Queens West A).
Queens Vocational 8, Bryant 3. David Robeles had eight strikeouts, Kendel Ortiz had a single, a double and a home run with three RBIs and three runs scored for Queens Vocational (5-2 Queens North B).
Archbishop Molloy 2, Xaverian 1. The Stanners held on to sole possession of first place in the CHSAA Brooklyn/Queens Diocesan with this one-run win over the Clippers Monday afternoon at Keyspan Park. Mike Sporton’s single in the top of the sixth inning brought home Molloy’s only two runs. The Stanners improved to 14-2 overall and 9-2 in league play with the win.
St. Edmund Prep 5, Christ the King 4. The Royals were upended by St. Edmund Monday at Juniper Valley Park, as Randy Caddle belted a solo homer in the seventh to put the Brooklyn school ahead to stay. CK dropped to 4-7 in league play with the loss.
Monsignor McClancy 9, Holy Cross 8. Kevin Conlin’s RBI single in the bottom of the eighth was the difference for McClancy, now 7-8 overall and 6-6 in the league. Cross feel to 1-9 in CHSAA play.
Xaverian 12, Christ the King 7. Pedro Beato had three hits and five RBIs, while Chris Grabowski added a double, a triple and four RBIs for the Clippers.
Archbishop Molloy 4, Holy Cross 3. Chris Kaible drove in two runs for the Stanners, while starter James Lally got credit for the win and Jovon Santos picked up the save.
St. Francis Prep 5, Christ the King 1. Prep hurler Dan Weinman struck out three and allowed just four hits, while Joe Ivazes had two hits, two runs scored and an RBI for the Terriers, now 14-4 and 9-3 in league play
Xaverian 2, Monsignor McClancy 1. Sean Malone’s seventh-inning RBI single helped Clippers starter Anthony Rosario, who fanned six, picking up the win.
Archbishop Molloy 13, Christ the King 0. Ryan Roberts and Nick Derba provided the offense with a home run and four and two RBIs, respectively, backing a solid outing from pitcher Matt Rizzoti, who allowed just one hit and struck out 11.
Reach Associate Sports Editor Dylan Butler by email at TimesLedger@aol.com or call 718-229-0300, Ext. 143.
