SUNNYVALE – It’s only a rumor that Chelsey Liu is still in the batter’s box at Fremont High, pounding foul balls into the cyclone fence along the third-base line.
Liu did that for quite a while Saturday in a 5-4 Homestead victory against Los Altos. In the end Liu’s bizarre 16-pitch at-bat helped lift the Mustangs to victory.
“I was just trying to put the ball in play,” Liu said. “She was pitching me inside and I was just trying to put the bat on the ball.”
Liu never did hit one fair, but eventually during the marathon at-bat she induced Los Altos pitcher Lizzy Beutter to throw a wild pitch that scored Julie Davis with the winning run to end the wild, rain-soaked game.
Homestead players ran to congratulate Davis at home plate and then gathered outside the ballpark to listen to an address from coach Steve Allemandi after the game.
The Mustangs scored four of their five runs in the final two innings in this Central Coast Section Division I quarterfinal game.
“We’ve scored most of our runs in the sixth inning this year and it’s getting old,” Allemandi said. “That last at-bat that Chelsey had just kept us going. And you can’t say enough about Julie Davis, leading off the inning with that triple.”
Davis’ three-bagger to lead off the seventh immediately put Los Altos in deep trouble with the game tied. But both teams still had to wait out a strikeout, two Los Altos conferences and Liu’s foul-a-thon before the pivotal wild pitch.
Davis said she was just focused on doing her job as the leadoff hitter in the seventh.
“I just wanted to get a hit, to get on any way possible. The hit was really timely – I just saw that outside pitch and went with it.”
Davis’ line drive rattled around in the left-field corner, allowing her to motor into third.
The win was an emotional one for Allemandi whose father Jim will have heart surgery on Thursday. His voice creaked with emotion as he spoke to his team after the game about his dad.
“It’s been a tough week for me,” Allemandi said. “He’s had some health issues this year -- more so than usual.”
Los Altos scored three times in the third, aided by Beutter’s run-scoring single to right field and a throwing error.
Homestead (20-6) still trailed 3-1 entering the bottom of the sixth when it took the lead 4-3 on an RBI single by Meghan Hook and a two-RBI single by Rachel Maloney.
Los Altos (13-12) tied the game in the top of the seventh on Elle Lowe’s clutch, two-out, RBI single to right field.
Lowe had three hits for the Eagles. Hook led Homestead with two hits.
Homestead now advances to the semifinals where it will face Carlmont at 7 p.m. Tuesday at PAL Stadium in San Jose.