Story by Michael Stamatos | Photo by Brandon Lauchnor

Emilio Gonzalez (Florida Atlantic) is not the guy opposing pitchers want to see with the bases loaded and no outs.

Unfortunately for Senators reliever Ty Harris (Brown), he entered Game 1 of the Cal Ripken Sr. League Championship Series in an impossible situation – with the bases loaded and no outs in the seventh, clinging to a one-run lead, and the hulking lefty slugger standing in the box.

Gonzalez wasted little time, smashing the second pitch of the at bat to the left-center field gap for a bases-clearing double, in perhaps his biggest hit of the season. The hit gave the Big Train their first lead of the game, 4-2. They picked up two more massive insurance runs in the inning on their way to a 9-2 win.

“If you stick to your process – guys support you, have energy – good things will happen,” Gonzalez said. “Team will start rolling – one guy gets going, everyone’s going.”

Both starters were flawless through three innings, with the Senators getting on the board first in the fourth. Back-to-back walks to open the inning, followed by a deep flyout, put runners on the corners with one out for Mikey Guy (Frostburg). Guy came through, ripping a double to center to give Southern Maryland a 1-0 lead.

The Big Train then made a pitching change, replacing Jake Titus (Kentucky) with Trevor Orth (Roanoke). Orth entered the game with runners at second and third and one out and executed perfectly, picking up two groundouts to escape the inning without any more damage.

The Senators got to Orth in the next inning. A leadoff walk, followed by singles from Carter Groen (UConn) and Nate McHugh (Creighton) gave Southern Maryland a big second run and a seemingly comfortable lead.

Meanwhile, Mark Loubier (Florida Atlantic) was locked in for Southern Maryland on the mound. He kept Bethesda off the board for the first five innings, generating soft contact and putting together quick innings.

In the sixth, Bethesda finally figured Loubier out. A leadoff walk and a groundout to first put a runner in scoring position for Matthew Westley (Virginia Tech). He smacked a single to bring in their first run of the game and force Loublier out of the game.

The Big Train broke through in the seventh. Following Gonzalez’s three run double, Davin Whitaker (East Carolina) picked up a single to bring him in. After a hustle double from Westley, Whitaker would come around to score on a sacrifice fly.

Their lead grew in the eighth. Two walks and a single loaded the bases again for Gonzalez, who lofted a ball to center for a sacrifice fly. Westley then hit a ball up the middle that the Senators’ shortstop got to, but his throw to first sailed wide, bringing in two more runs to make it 9-2.

Flamethrower Jonathan Stevens (Alabama) was lights-out coming out of the pen. He finished out the final two innings, allowing only one Senator to reach base on a hit by pitch.

Bethesda will face the Senators in Game 2 Thursday at Povich Field, looking to clinch their second straight – and 11th overall – Cal Ripken Sr. League championship.