Epic rally lifts Corpus Christi London over Brock in 3A Texas (UIL) Baseball State Championship

ROUND ROCK, Texas — By the time Corpus Christi London’s leadoff hitter stepped into the batter’s box during the Class 3A UIL Baseball State Championship game, the Pirates already faced a 4-0 hole and an uphill climb to catch up to Brock.

Facing their biggest deficit of the postseason against the Eagles, the Pirates went to work at the plate.

Led by sophomore third baseman Blake Watters, London staged an epic comeback as the team knotted the game up with a four-run bottom of the first inning. Watters and the Pirates then rallied to score 11 unanswered runs and surge to a 16-13 come-from-behind win over Brock in the 3A state title game on Saturday morning at Dell Diamond.

The victory represents Corpus Christi London’s first baseball state championship in school history after the Pirates lost 7-6 to Malakoff in last year’s 3A state title game.

The Eagles’ and Pirates’ 29 combined runs also represents the highest-scoring UIL State Tournament game in Texas high school baseball history.

RELATED: Brock-Corpus Christi London Box Score | 2022 UIL Baseball State Tournament brackets | Statewide Texas HS Scoreboard

“Coming in (to the bottom of the first), everyone was kind of down but Coach Salinas and all our coaches just said, ‘It’s only the first. We still have seven innings left to play.’ We put up a four spot in that first inning and just went from there,” Watters said.

“We hit the ball well and did everything right. We had really good at-bats. Our two-out hitting was big today and we had a lot of clutch hits. Everyone came through.”

“We've been in that position before being down. And we always seem to rally and come back,” senior catcher Jayden Martinez said. “We stay focused in the dugout and really don't think about how much we're down. We just try and score a run every inning.”

Watters, who was voted MVP of the Class 3A state championship game, finished a 2-for-2 performance at the plate with two doubles, a pair of sacrifice flies, a run scored and a game-high five RBI.

The sophomore third baseman drove in a run during each of his four at-bats, including the tying and go-ahead runs during a five-run fifth inning for the Pirates.

“I was seeing the ball really well actually,” he said. “I was just trying to stay with it and have a good approach to see the ball. They missed the middle in a couple of times and I got to pull two doubles into left field. I was seeing everything well and trying to hit everything hard.”

Watters also entered the game as a relief pitcher during the top of the sixth inning and closed out the contest for Corpus Christi London as the team’s fourth pitcher to make an appearance Saturday.

He finished two scoreless innings on the mound with a walk and a pair of strikeouts.

“It's kind of the same as last year, (coming in during the) middle of the inning,” Watters said. “I knew it really meant a lot for the seniors to win and I was trying to get it done for them.”

Brock jumped on the Pirates during the top of the first inning, scoring four runs on an RBI double by sophomore second baseman Cam Harris, a two-run single by junior pitcher Ian Fuchs and a throwing error, one of five London fielding errors throughout the game.

The Eagles tacked on five more runs during the top of the second fueled by a three-run triple off the bat of Harris and an RBI single by senior first baseman Peyton Shaffer, giving Brock a 9-4 edge midway through the second frame, its largest lead of the contest.

But the Pirates responded quickly, knotting the game up with four runs during the bottom of the first and rallying for a three-run second inning and five-run fourth that helped Corpus Christi London take the lead for good on a two-run double by Watters.

“He started off with a curveball,” Watters said. “He threw me two curveballs that were down that made it a 1-2 count. Then he gave me a fastball up and in, and I just took it.”

Corpus Christi London thrived in tense situational-hitting moments throughout the game.

The Pirates boasted a 13-for-28 (.464) day at the plate collectively and landed their lead-off hitter on base in four of six innings. London’s lineup was also a phenomenal 12-for-21 offensively with runners on base, 9-for-16 with runners in scoring position and a perfect 7-for-7 with a runner on third base with less than two outs.

“It was definitely a hitter’s day. I feel like they were just throwing a lot of fastballs. They weren't really hitting their off speed (pitches). So we tried to get that fastball and stay on it and drive it uphill.”

Martinez finished a 4-for-5 performance with two runs and an RBI, while freshman second baseman Rudy-James Olivares tallied a 2-for-2 day at the plate with a double, a walk, a sac fly, a run scored and four RBI for the Pirates.

Brock was led offensively by Harris, who ended the day with a 3-for-5 line that included a double, triple, three runs scored and five RBI, and Fuchs, who was 2-for-3 with a double, run scored and four RBI for the Eagles.

London’s incredible comeback marked the second baseball state championship for a Corpus Christi-area team this weekend, after Sinton blanked Argyle 9-0 to win the 4A UIL Baseball State Championship.

“It’s amazing. It's gonna be something everyone remembers forever. I mean, between us and Sinton, congratulations to them too, that’s two different state titles in a matter of three days, so this was a pretty great weekend for South Texas baseball,” Watters said.

“It says a lot. South Texas baseball is slept on a little bit. Jose Trevino for the Yankees, I mean, he really opened it up for a lot of the young players, him and Aaron Hernandez. They really opened this up for a lot of us and we want to keep it going.”

Here are photos from Saturday's 3A championship game:

All photos by Tommy Hays