SNYDER, TX-- The no. 11-ranked Wall Hawks pulled off an incredible comeback against the Idalou Wildcats on Friday to secure a place in the Class 3A Region I Semifinals.
“It was probably the longest game ever,” head coach Jason Schniers joked.
The Wildcats jumped out on the Hawks with seven runs in the bottom of the first inning off of pitcher Caleb Heuertz.
The Hawks kept chipping away at that deficit, scoring one run in the second inning and two runs in each the third and the fourth inning while holding Idalou scoreless to make it 7-5.
“It looked like we had all the momentum,” Schniers said.
But a couple of errors plagued the Hawks in the bottom of the fourth and Wildcats capitalized to plate two runs.
“Before you knew it, it was back to 9-5,” Schniers said.
Heuertz settled down after the first inning, allowing just that pair of runs following the explosive first inning.
The Hawks would crank it up offensively, however, scoring 13 runs in the top of the sixth inning to take the lead.
Junior Gage Weishun started the scoring onslaught with a three-run triple to cut the deficit to 9-8 before the Hawks eventually took the lead for good.
“Our kids did an excellent job of playing the full game and not letting emotions get to them,” Schniers praised. “They stayed calm. They understood there was a lot of game left and we were going to be alright as long as we played.”
Weishuhn finished the day 3-for-3 with six RBIs and three runs scored. Tanner Seider went 5-for-5 at the plate with four runs scored and a pair of RBIs for the Hawks.
Heuertz went five and a third innings for the Hawks, allowing nine runs on five hits with six strikeouts.
Baylor Halfmann came on in the sixth inning to relieve Heuertz. Halfmann allowed just one hit in his one and two-third innings with a pair of strikeouts to his credit.
The Hawks will now face the winner of the Brock-Dublin game in the Regional Semifinals.
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