Kobe Gomez was tucked away behind the tree, just about 10 feet removed from Queen Creek’s baseball field where the chaos he was in the middle of happened about 15 minutes earlier.

He was talking to his family, going over what might be the best baseball game of his career. By then, his heartbeat slowed.

What remained was Queen Creek junior’s wry smile, a bit of a bruised left knee and the look of a kid who helped the 6A defending state champion stay alive in a dramatic play-in game.

No. 9 Queen Creek walked off visiting No. 24 Tucson 2-1 on Wednesday, partly because of Gomez and the team’s ability to remain calm when the Bulldogs (18-11) were one swing away from failing to make the postseason let alone defend their state title.

Gomez singled with one out in the seventh off hard-luck starter Juan Hernandez and stole second base and then third on what was nearly a strike-em out, throw-em out double play to send it into extra innings.

Instead the next batter, leadoff hitter Jet Berry, sent a 3-1 pitch through the infield to score Gomez to set the Queen Creek dugout off with players rushing the field and chasing down Berry after the winning hit.

“I was just playing pepper up there and trying to give the boys another chance,” Berry said of the game winner. “We’re still trying to go. We knew we had to win today. We’re focused day by day and now we have another one.”

While Berry, who came in hitting .506 with a team-best 32 RBIs, had the winning hit, make no mistake, the Bulldogs were close to turning in their uniforms instead of playing the eighth seed in the 6A state tournament at 11 a.m. on Saturday.

Jet Berry's helmet remains on the field while the team huddles after Queen Creek's 2-1 walk-off win over Tucson in 6A play-in action on Wednesday (Jason P. Skoda/AzPreps365)

Prior to scoring the winning run in the seventh, Gomez robbed Hernandez of a home run in the top of the first inning and drove in the first run of the game with two outs in the second inning after Tyke Daniels reached on an error.

“(Center fielder) Tait (Reynolds) kept telling me had I had room, so I just kept going, and going,” Gomez said of the catch. “I got to wall and brought (the ball) back in. I just knew I had to do everything I could to make a play right there in the first inning.”

Queen Creek coach Mikel Moreno was impressed by Gomez’s momentum shifting play.

“How big was that?” Moreno said of the catch. “First inning. That goes out and they gain the momentum immediately. That was huge. He’s a gamer and he had a great game. He’s been grinding and grinding.

“He’s really steady and he came through big time today.”

Gomez was humble about his performance because, like the rest of the Bulldogs, they know there is more to do, considering what the program accomplished last year.

“We have a lot of work to do still,” Gomez said. “We’ve had our ups and downs, but we know how good we can be, so we just need to be at our best.”

This was a very crisp baseball game.

The defense on both sides was excellent. Reynolds made a diving catch in center field, and Tucson third baseman Alan Krimpe and second baseman Gabriel Morales combined for 11 assists, including a spectacular double play that Krimpe started with a back hand on a smash by Manny Hoyos.

As for the pitchers, they were around the zone all game with just four total walks.

Queen Creek lefty Mason Lizzaraga (six innings, five hits, four strikeouts, one earned run) kept his team in the game.

Queen Creek's Mason Lizzaraga threw well in a no-decision against Tucson. (Andy Silvas/Special to AzPreps365)

“That’s probably the best 24th-seed this state has ever seen,” Moreno said. “They played really well. They pushed us and made us work for everything we got.”

Hernandez, featuring a good curveball to go with good velocity, was called the best pitcher Queen Creek has seen all year. The 6-foot right-hander threw a complete game and held one of the better hitting teams to six hits and one earned run with four strikeouts and two walks.

He also had a double in the sixth inning to score the Badgers only run, and don’t forget he was robbed by Gomez.

“I jumped on the first fastball I saw and got it fair,” said Hernandez, who is going to Pima Community College, of the double. “And it was probably the best game I’ve pitched in my four years, but what I will remember most is how this team turned things around and the way we played at the end.”

The emotions of Tucson coach Mark Morris shifted as he talked about the tough road loss and having his senior class walk off the field defeated while realizing the Badgers pushed the defending state champion to the final frame of an intense game.

“We were No. 42 (in the rankings) at one point and we told them we essentially have to win the rest of our games,” said Morris, whose team came in with a six-game win streak. “I have to hand it to them. They did everything they could to get here. Losing is hard, especially when it’s the seniors’ last game, but to come up here and lose 2-1 to a program like Queen Creek, we are happy with how played at the end of the season.”

The Bulldogs are feeling good after winning for the seventh time in eight games, with the only loss coming in the regular season finale that knocked them into the play-in round.

Moreno saw his team show a vital characteristic on Wednesday – something only confident squads can do – in the throes of an elimination game.

“We stayed poised,” Moreno said “What happens when you get frustrated? You press and try to do too much, but we didn’t have any of that. Everyone stayed with it and didn’t give (into the idea of losing to the 24th seed). Everyone stayed with it and there was no panic in the dugout.

“We focused on the process and execution. The boys did a good job.”