Tesoro’s baseball team grabbed sole possession of first place in the South Coast League in a dramatic way Tuesday.

The Titans scored in the bottom of the ninth inning for a walk-off 2-1 win over Capistrano Valley at Tesoro High School.

Tesoro is 8-2 in the South Coast League. Capistrano Valley is 7-3. They play each other twice more this week, the final week of the regular season. Wednesday’s game is at Capistrano Valley and Friday’s game is at Tesoro.

With the game tied 1-1 in the bottom of the ninth, senior Jacob Lambdin led off with a bad-hop single through the infield. Senior Jackson Kemmerer followed with a bunt that Capistrano Valley pitcher Owen Geiss fielded cleanly but his throw was high and sailed into right field, allowing Lambdin to score.

Geiss had another outstanding day of pitching. The senior, who signed with Long Beach State, entered the game with a 1.36 ERA, and he held Tesoro to four hits and one earned run.

Lamdin, a senior, pitched the final three innings, holding the Cougars to one hit and no runs with five strikeouts. His base hit in the sixth inning drove in the run that made it 1-1.

Tesoro (18-8 overall), No. 11 in the Orange County Top 25, has won 11 of its past 13 games. No. 15 Capistrano Valley is 13-12 overall.

The Titans were the CIF Southern Section Division 4 and CIF Southern California Regional Division IV champions last season.

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“This team is putting it together at the end of the season like we did last year when we got hot and kept it going,” said Tesoro coach Tony Nieto. “That’s a tribute to our players, and especially our seniors. We have 11 seniors who don’t want the season to end.”

Nieto said big defensive plays were plentiful Tuesday, with Kemmerer making a diving catch in left field in the first inning and Tanner Tobias expertly handling bunts.