Gibbs Ends Long Losing Streak With Victory Over Southeast

It was a thrill that was a long time coming for the Gibbs baseball team.

Taylor Riddick rolled an RBI single to the right side that drove in Colin Porter for the winning run Tuesday night, as the Gladiators rallied from two down to walk off with a wild 13-12 victory over Southeast. The win snaps a 71-game losing streak that dates back over four years ago.

Down to their final outs, the Gladiators (1-6) immediately got things going as Jahkada Tafari and Cedric Holt both singled to start the inning. Taylor Going was hit by a pitch that loaded the bases, and he then gave way to the courtesy-runner, Porter. Tafari was picked off at third base, which then prompted a sacrifice bunt from Jacquez White that loaded the bases as White reached safely at first. David De Los Santos had an RBI single through the left side that scored Holt to tie it and also brought Riddick to the plate for the biggest moment of his high school career.

“The first thing going through my head was just a sense of relief, based on all the years of not being able to pull through and come out with a victory,” said Gladiators manager Kem Mosley. “We had been working to get to this point and it definitely was a show of all the hard work and effort that the guys have been putting in over the years.”

Gibbs had last won a game on February 23rd, 2013, a 17-11 win over Keswick Christian.

“We had been telling them that we had been in a couple of games earlier this year and things just faltered, and we just kept telling them to stay steadfast and keep your head in and it will happen,” Mosley said. “You just have to stay in it and stay competitive. Everything clicked at the right moment. My biggest thing was to make sure everybody reached base safely to finish off the play so that we could go home and really celebrate.”

It was a wild contest throughout, with 35 total hits recorded off of a total of eight different pitchers. Every starter on both teams reached base safely and the lead changed sides five times. Cedric Holt led all hitters by going 4-for-5 with two runs and two RBIs, while Southeast’s Kareem Lewis was also 4-for-5 with two RBIs and a run to lead his side.

“I have to tip my hat to Southeast and the respect that they showed us,” Mosley said. “It was a tough loss for them and the type of thing that could be demoralizing, but they knew what our situation was and they were very quick to congratulate us.”

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