The Mesa Wildcats defeated the AZ Desert Blaze 6-2 Sunday in the 14u AAA title game of the USSSA Bring the Heat Classic at Big League Dreams.

Brady Hochhalter pitched all seven innings for the Wildcats, striking out five.

The game’s first run came in the bottom of the second inning, when Erik Hildebrandt of the Blaze hit a grounder up the middle for a single and later stole home. In the third, Cole Valletta hit a home run for Blaze.

The Wildcats had a big third inning, scoring five runs. Parker Hills singled to left-center with the bases loaded for an RBI. Zachary Windle singled home Trevor Jensen, and Brady Hochhalter’s sac fly brought home Brady Millen. Michael Bartholf then fired one into the gap in right-center for a double and two RBIs.

“After the home run in the second inning, we didn't let that get us down,” said Wildcats coach John Wakefield. “We stuck it out no matter what happened.”

To end the Wildcats rally, Josh Webster snagged a line drive out of the air and threw it to Austin Bull at second base, completing the double play for Blaze. The team tried to battle out of the deficit for the rest of the game, but the Wildcats came up with double plays in both the sixth and seventh innings.

“Having a double play in the bottom of the seventh will take the wind out of anybody’s sail,” said Wakefield.