Mavericks tie Quakes for 1st half title

When the Quakes won on Thursday, they knew they had 3 chances to win 1 game against the High Desert Mavericks to win the first-half South Division title.

The first chance came on Friday, and they lost on Mickey Wiswall’s 11th-inning home run 9-7 after tying the score in the ninth.

On Saturday, they had the tying runs on base with one out in the 9th, but fell in again on the road in Adelanto, falling 5-2.

Now, instead of having a well-deserved rest during the all-star break that begins Sunday, the Quakes will be restless.  The Mavericks tied the Quakes with identical 37-33 records. Actually, Lancaster also tied, but was eliminated on the head-to-head tiebreaker.

So, the tiebreaker will be played in the first scheduled meeting of the second half between the teams. After the Quakes open the second half with a four-game series at home against Bakersfield, they travel back to Adelanto to open a series with the Mavericks. The game on Monday, June 25 will serve as the tiebreaker. It will be a long 9 days as the Quakes think about 2 missed opportunities.

The last time 2 teams tied for a first-half title, it was 2007. That year, Lancaster and the 66ers tied for the South Division title and Lancaster won the first meeting of the second half between the teams.