PORT NECHES — Catching 19 innings in one day was all worth it to Port Neches-Groves sophomore Ryan Sosa.

If a scheduled doubleheader against Shadow Creek took nearly going the distance of a tripleheader just to meet Nederland again and extend the season, Sosa didn’t mind the marathon.

“It was definitely hard back there, but all the practice taught me how to endure it, I guess,” Sosa said. “I’m pretty good, now.”

Of course, that was three days after PNG (20-13-1) won a 12-inning, 3-2 clash at The Reservation in Game 2. Sosa said it took about two days for him to recover.

“Definitely the worst part was directly after, when I drove home, my legs kept cramping up,” he said.

The Indians never doubted they’d get this far in the 5A baseball playoffs despite a 2-8-1 start to the year. Their non-district slate, however, included nationally ranked Lake Charles foes Barbe and Sam Houston, as well as northern Louisiana power West Monroe.

Indians coach Scott Carter would rather the season as more gratifying for the upward swing to the season than challenging because of the tough start.

“We start three sophomores, and to watch them grow and develop — early in the year, we told them they’re young — now we tell them they’re seasoned,” he said. “They’ve got 34 games under their belts. It’s time to play like a veteran.”

PNG gets to make up for a bit of adversity from earlier in the season with another shot at its next-door rival, the same Nederland (20-10-2) group that swept the Indians’ first District 21-5A series, 5-2 and 5-0 in March.

“We are young and we were inexperienced, but now, we are many games in, and we’ve gained our experience now, and we’re ready,” senior pitcher Austin Schaper said.

It’s the first time since 1999 the two teams have squared off in postseason play, according to KBMT-TV. PNG won the first game of the series 10-1, but Nederland won the last two, 4-3 and 8-7, the station reported.

“It’s great for our community,” said Carter, who led the Indians to the 5A state championship two years ago. “It speaks volumes for this area to have two teams within 8 miles of each other playing in the regional quarterfinals.”

Schaper played a big role in the clincher against Shadow Creek. He threw the final seven innings and held the Sharks scoreless on two hits while striking out two and walking three in 78-pitch relief for Khristian Curtis.

“It was pretty intense the whole way,” Schaper said. “I just went in there and threw strikes. Really, my defense called the outs for me. They did an incredible job back there.”

Reece Mancera finally ended the game with a two-out, bases-loaded single on a one-pitch, two-strike count. For his part on offense, Sosa drove in a run and was one of five players each to lace two hits.

“It was exciting,” Carter said. “We felt like we won it in the bottom of the seventh (but Cade Billeaud was called out at home on a Sosa single). For them to hang on and win in the bottom of the 12th was gratifying to the kids. It was a hard-fought game. Shadow Creek played really well. It was a real good baseball game for 12 innings.”

PNG has gone 11-4 since being swept by Nederland and ended up third in the district. Just like the Bulldogs, the Indians overcame a Game 1 loss in the bi-district (PNG’s defeat was to Friendswood) and have won four straight.

“… It’s been an ongoing process of getting better and finding the right chemistry and trying to put a group together we felt was going to compete for seven innings,” Carter said.

Or more, if necessary.

“At the beginning of the season, we started off slow, but just at practice, we pretend it’s game-like,” Sosa said. “We really put in the hard work to get where we are right now.”

The Indians don’t feel they’re the same team that started district play 0-2.

“I think if we go out and play how we play now, we know what we’re doing now, and we can do it now,” Schaper said.

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I.C. Murrell: 721-2435. Twitter: @ICMurrellPANews

**UPDATES with station report both teams met in 1999 playoff**