SOLANA BEACH — There are moments in sports when the emotions of the game supersede the outcome.
Tuesday at Santa Fe Christian, the Eagles beat Montgomery 9-2 in a first-round San Diego Section Division 1 playoff game.
The victory propels No. 7-seeded SFC (15-13) into the double-elimination round today at No. 2-seeded Cathedral Catholic.
For a young and talented Montgomery team, the season ends at 9-18.
Woven into the Eagles’ nine runs was a long, pinch-hit, two-run homer by senior Conner Sawyer in the sixth inning.
It was just the fourth at-bat of the season for Sawyer, who is recovering from a torn ACL suffered while playing football.
“I’ve been coaching for a long time, and that was easily the best memory I’ll have from a game,” said SFC coach Lance Roenicke. “Incredible moment, just incredible. Connor has been at every practice, every game. He cares about his teammates.
”It’s just so awesome that this dedication to this team, this school was rewarded.”
Sawyer was a starter on last season’s loaded SFC team, batting leadoff.
”We’ve had a really good season, but we missed Connor’s leadership,” Roenicke said, “We missed his speed at ther top of the lineup. We missed his defense in the outfield. Honestly, we thought his season was done. But he got a little bit better every day. He did his rehab, and the kid is as strong as an ox.
“He got to where he could jog. He got to where he could swing a bat.”
Sawyer will continue to have a role during the playoffs.
“He still can run, so we’ll use him as a pinch-hitter. And if he gets a hit, we’ll run for him. Today he got to jog around the bases.”
Sawyer, a tight end/safety in football, will attend Claremont-McKenna next fall. He hopes to play football and baseball.He called his injury and recovery “a long, frustrating, seven-month journey with plenty of ups and downs.”
“Today’” he added, “was most certainly an up.”
SFC’s Jackson Noonan had a single, double, scored a run and drove in one.
Sam Carney had two hits, walked twice, scored twice and drove in one.
Colin Roche had a single and double and scored twice. Riley Nelson drove in two.
Kam Lohse pitched the first four innings for the Eagles, allowing two runs, one unearned.
Kylan Brunn and David Harrison finished the game.
“My teammates, this team, has been the motivating factor for me,” Sawyer said. “It felt good to get an at-bat that meant something in the game. Hopefully, there will be more.”
SFC has wins this season over San Marcos, Rancho Bernardo and Coronado, all high-seeded teams. The success could lead to a long postseason run.
”We were able to save a few innings by getting Kam Lohse out early, so we’ll see what happens,” Roenicke said.
