Bees Escape Alexandria in 9th, Move on to National Semifinals

BRACKET | PHOTOS

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – Dallas College Eastfield's baseball team advanced to the national semifinals at the National Junior College Athletic Association Division III World Series Monday.

Eastfield beat Alexandria Technical & Community College 8-7 on a two-out walk-off RBI single by Jayden Boyd.

The No. 1-ranked Harvester Bees (46-13) move on to play SUNY Niagra (53-6) at 6:15 p.m. Monday at TVA Credit Union Ballpark. The winner advances to the double-elimination national championship round Wednesday.

Eastfield won it in the bottom of the ninth after Alexandria loaded the bases with two intentional free passes to Sebastian Palma and Sergio Gastelum – the second after Angel Gutierrez and Palma each stole a base to put the Bees in optimum scoring position at second and third base. Gutierrez was cut down on at the plate on a fielder's choice ground ball by Erik Aguirre. That left the bases loaded with two outs for Boyd, who singled in the gamewinning run to score Palma.

The Harvester Bees trailed 5-1 after an inning-and-a-half, and by six runs after five-and-a-half innings. Eastfield pulled within 7-3 after Keydren Majors cranked a two-run, two-out homer on the first pitch he saw in the bottom of the seventh. It was Majors' sixth home run of the season.

In the eighth, the Harvesters used an RBI single by Gastelum on a 3-2 count, a two-run single by Aguirre and a one-out RBI single by Sebastian Vasquez. The four-run, five-hit inning tied the game to set the stage for the ninth.

Bees closer Turner Corey came on to pitch with two runners aboard and no outs in the Alexandria ninth. Corey, who recorded his nation-tying seventh save of the year, got a pop out that turned into a double play and a groundout to get out of the inning unscathed before Eastfield put it away in the bottom half of the inning.

Aguirre, Boyd and Majors each had two hits. Eight of the nine batters in the Bees' lineup accounted for Eastfield's 11 hits. Alexandria's Parker Schulz was 2 for 3 with a two-run homer in the sixth that gave the Legends the 7-1 lead. Bennett Hylla also had two hits for Alexandria.

Gutierrez and Gastelum each stole two of the eight bases the Harvester Bees swiped.

Eastfield reliever Vicente Rosas allowed a hit and a walk through two innings before being replaced by Corey in the ninth.

Monday's morning game was pushed back after delays altered Sunday's schedule.

The last time Eastfield met SUNY Niagra, which advanced to the semifinals with a second round win over three-time defending champion Rowan College South Jersey-Gloucester, was 2023 at the World Series when the Bees won 10-1 in seven innings.