Befunky Collage
Baseball Long Beach Poly Softball

Long Beach Sports Top 10 Moments Of 2022-23: Long Beach Poly Softball/Baseball CIF Walk-Off Wins

At the end of every school year we look back to reminisce on the accomplishments that defined Long Beach sports over the last 12 months. This year has been extra special because of the variety of schools and sports represented on this list— which is a hallmark of our diverse city and athletic community.

No. 10 – Poly Football Beats Mission Viejo

No. 9 – Poly Adds Girls’ Flag Football

No. 8 – Lakewood Hosts CIF Championship

No. 7 – Wilson Boys’ Tennis Makes School History With CIF Title

No. 6 – Millikan Girls’ Golf Wins First Ever CIF Championship

No. 5 – Long Beach Takes All The Hardware At CIF-SS Track Finals

No. 4 – Long Beach Poly Softball/Baseball Walk-off Wins

Not only did the Long Beach Poly baseball and softball teams win CIF Southern Section playoff games via walk-off hit on the same day, they did so on the same street and at almost the exact same time.

On May 9 at Joe Rodgers Stadium, Long Beach Poly softball trailed visiting King High School 4-3 in the second round of the CIF Southern Section Division 4 playoffs. In the bottom of the seventh inning when Tiare Ho-Ching doubled into left center field, here sister Kiele came up next and sent a shot to the fence in right center. The speedy sisters both came in to score on the 2-run home run as Poly walked off winners 5-4. It’s the first time in history the Jackrabbits have won two postseason games.

Seconds after Ho-Ching scored, fans at the softball field heard a roar from nearby Bohl Diamond at Blair Field. It was the sound of Poly baseball beating Flintridge Prep 1-0 in the Division 3 quarterfinals thanks to another walk-off hit from Max Pemberton. The junior had three walk-off hits in the last seven games for the Jackrabbits.

And since it is the Jackrabbits leaving the other team on the field with a walk-off hit, we just call this the day of the Hop-Offs.

VIDEO: Long Beach Poly vs. Flintridge Prep, CIF Baseball
VIDEO: Long Beach Poly vs. King, CIF Softball
Support The562.org
JJ Fiddler
JJ Fiddler is an award-winning sportswriter and videographer who has been covering Southern California sports for multiple newspapers and websites since 2004. After attending Long Beach State and creating the first full sports page at the Union Weekly Newspaper, he has been exclusively covering Long Beach prep sports since 2007.
http://The562.org