Another Conference Sweep

Following a tough mid-week loss at home against Barton, our Catawba College baseball team went to Mars Hill and swept the series.

Week In Review 

Our first game of the week was on Wednesday against Barton.  We ended up losing the game 10-7 but a showed a lot of competitiveness after being down 10-0 after 5 innings.

The weekend sent us on our first true road trip of the season as we went to Mars Hill on Friday night preparing to play two games Saturday and one Sunday.  We won all three games by scores of 9-8, 14-1, and 9-1!

A Game of Firsts

Our loss against Barton was disappointing because none of us like to lose, but it also had some very great moments, including two guys getting their first collegiate hit.

With runners on first and second and two outs in the eighth, Keaton Hawks reached on an infield single.  This was the Keaton’s first hit of the season and first as a college player.  A freshman from East Davidson High School, Keaton has a lot of potential and I am sure this was the first hit of many as an Indian.

Michael Whited, the freshman infielder from Ragsdale High School, got his first hit of the season in the ninth inning.  This RBI single came with two outs and brought the go ahead run to the plate.  Even though he went to Ragsdale (my high school’s arch-rival), I was still thrilled to see him come through in a big situation.

Defense Wins Championships

Saturday, in game one of the series, it was a seesaw affair with one team scoring and the other answering in the next inning.  It’s in those types of games where defensive plays become even more important.

In the bottom of the fifth inning, we were winning 5-4 with runners on second and third and one out.  The Mars Hill batter swung and ripped a line drive down the first base line.  Luckily for us, Austin Moyer was playing there and made a great play.

Moyer quickly (and yes I used Moyer and quickly in the same sentence) moved to his left and snagged the line drive preventing two more runs from scoring.  We then got the next guy out and finished the inning with no more damage. 

Austin making that play was a huge momentum shifter and was worthy of me giving a huge fist pump after the play.

Closin’ It Out

One batter. That is what game one of the weekend series ended up coming down to.  A Mars Hill batter, Tyler Reboulet, who had swung the bat very well on the day, walked to the plate down a run with runners on first and third and two outs. At this time, Ross Whitley entered the game for us.

The result was a fly ball to centerfielder, Blake Houston, and a victory in game one.  Not many people think too much about one simple out in a game where a team makes 27 of them.  In this situation, it came down to that one batter.  Ross (or Rossy as he is now being called) got the job done and sealed our first win on the weekend.

Looking Ahead

With the upcoming week comes another trip to Pfeiffer and a home series against heated rival Wingate.  Just a heads up, this series is going to be intense.