Van Meetren again hero after midnight in Gorman win

Erik Van Meetren was calm and collected after midnight Sunday, hardly overwhelmed by what he had just done for his team.

Scott Baker, Bishop Gorman’s American Legion baseball coach, wore a look of astonishment more fitting for the moment.

“Wow, special win. For me, I’ve seen some incredible stuff in this program,” Baker said. “It’s kind of tough to put in perspective how this one ranks, but this was a special win tonight.”

More like this morning.

Van Meetren crushed a three-run home run to left field in the top of the ninth inning, then Kenny Meimerstorf followed with a towering shot to left to cap a six-run frame and help Gorman rally for an 11-9 victory over rival Sierra Vista in the winners’ bracket final of the Legion West Regional at Wilson Stadium.

It was the second time in three days Van Meetren provided heroics after midnight.

The senior-to-be catcher hit a two-out single in the bottom of the ninth to score Johnny Sewald with the winning run in an 11-10 victory over Long Beach-Wilson (Calif.) early Friday in a game that ended at 1:20 a.m. Saturday’s game stretched to about 12:20 a.m. Sunday.

Van Meetren laughed when asked what happens to him when the clock strikes midnight.

“I don’t know, dude. I love playing here,” said Van Meetren, who has committed to UNLV. “It’s a great field to play at.”

Bishop Gorman (58-12) clinched a spot in Monday’s championship round, and is the only team among the four remaining at the eight-team, double-elimination tournament without a loss.

Gorman, playing as the Southern Nevada Titans, will face upstart Waipahu (Hawaii) at 8 p.m. Sunday.

If the Titans win, they would have to win only one of two possible games Monday to reach the Legion World Series, which opens Friday at Spokane, Wash.

“We’re not playing great, but we’ve put ourselves in position where if we win (Sunday), somebody’s got to beat us twice on Monday,” Baker said. “It puts us in the driver’s seat for now.”

Sierra Vista’s Julian Cutolo walked to lead off the bottom of the ninth, giving the Lions the potential tying run at the plate. But Gorman’s T.J. White struck out Blair Goldsack before Alex Estrella grounded into a double play to end the game.

Jonathan Gordon earned the win, throwing two scoreless innings of relief, and White picked up the save.

Van Meetren finished 4-for-5 with four RBIs to lead Gorman. Meimerstorf homered twice, Johnny Field was 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs and Michael Blasko went 3-for-5 for the Titans.

Van Meetren said experience has enabled Gorman to rally in all three tournament games so far.

The Titans trailed 9-3 in their opener against Long Beach, 5-4 in their winners’ bracket opener against Tucson Northwest (Ariz.) and 7-2 against Sierra Vista.

“We’ve been here. We’ve got the experience,” said Van Meetren, whose team has won the past five Class 4A state high school titles as well as the 2008 Legion World Series. “We know never to quit. We’re never going to lie down.

“There’s no time limit in baseball, so it’s anybody’s game.”

Baker said: "I think that’s exactly it. This program has been built the last seven years on perseverance and a never-say-die attitude, and it’s been showing, for sure.”

Jake Hager went 3-for-5, including a solo homer in the sixth, to lead Sierra Vista (43-15), which suddenly finds itself in an elimination game at 5 p.m. Sunday against Long Beach.

Connor Klein and Cutolo had two hits and two RBIs each for the Lions.

Waipahu 9, Tucson Northwest 8 — Waipahu brought a modest 12-6 record into the tournament, and appeared headed for an early exit after opening with a loss to Sierra Vista on Thursday.

But by ousting two opponents in two days, Waipahu has emerged as the Cinderella among the four teams remaining.

Brenn Peltier’s two-out double in the top of the ninth scored Myron Enos with the go-ahead run to lift Waipahu to the victory.

“This is how we’re supposed to be playing,” Waipahu coach Milton Takenaka said. “That first game, I think it was just a bit of nerves. Now, we’re a little bit more relaxed.”

Waipahu’s Cheves Numata allowed one earned run on three hits and two walks in 2 1/3 innings of relief to get the win. The right-hander struck out five, including two of the five batters he faced in the ninth.

“Our kids just clutched up when we had to,” Takenaka said.

Peltier, Enos, Jonathan Kealoha (two RBIs) and Ignatius Mackenzie had two hits each for Waipahu (14-7).

Robert Kallal went 2-for-5 with two RBIs to lead Tucson (14-9).

Long Beach-Wilson 10, Taylorsville (Utah) 0 — Sean Buckle fired a five-hit shutout with 13 strikeouts and no walks to help the Bruins (24-4) eliminate the Warriors (26-7) in eight innings.

Buckle also went 3-for-5 with a triple and a double for Long Beach, which scored five runs in the eighth.

Long Beach’s Soloman Williams had three hits, including a solo home run in the fifth. Teammate Stefan Miladinovich added a two-run blast in the seventh.