No. 14 Wall Puts One Hand on District Title with Run-Rule Win

WALL, TX— With 25 mph winds blowing out to center field, the 14th-ranked Wall Hawks varsity baseball team used the long ball to down R eagan County 18-5 in five innings on Tuesday.

"It feels really good getting revenge (for our loss)," said Wall junior Gage Weishuhn. "We just played bad last time."

The win gives Wall sole possession of first place and the upper hand on District 4-3A.

"For our kids, [a district championship] is one of the goals they set out to accomplish for themselves," said Wall Head Coach Jason Schneirs. "At the start of a season, they sit down and look at what they want to accomplish for the year. When we went over to Big Lake, [Reagan County] got after us. Sometimes a loss isn't always a bad thing. It can open your eyes and make you realize "Hey, we've got to bear down and stay focused." The kids came out today like they did on Friday. They had a goal in mind, they had a purpose." 

Wall trailed 2-0 after the Owls got a pair of runs on a 2-run single in the first inning.

The Hawks, looking to avenge their loss earlier to Reagan County, put up four runs in the first to lead 4-2 thanks to an RBI double by Dryden Virden and a two-run home run by Weishuhn, both wind-aided.

"It's usually always [windy], so we adapt and just do what we can do," Weishuhn grinned.

Virden led the Hawks by going 4-for-4 at the plate with three RBIs and three runs scored. Weishuhn went 2-for-3 with three RBIs and three runs scored as well.

After Reagan County made it 4-3 in the top of the second, they Hawks sent eight batters to the plate and scored two runs to lead 6-3 after two frames.

Wall Junior left-hander Sutton Hurst struck out two Owls to set them down in order in the third.

Wall plated two more runs in the third to lead 8-3 before the floodgates opened on Reagan County in the bottom of the fourth.

In that inning, Wall sent 14 batters to the plate and scored 10 runs to put Reagan County away for good.

The Owls picked up two runs on a home run from Justin Chavez in the top of the 5th inning but the damage had already been done

Hurst went five complete innings where he allowed 5 runs on five hits with six strikeouts.

"Sutton Hurst did a great job on the mound," Schneirs said. "His pitching helped keep the pressure on them and make a few mistakes."

Hurst also went 2-for-4 at the plate with a pair of RBIs to help his own cause in the win.

Offensively for the Owls, they mustered five hits as a team. Chavez was the lone Owl to register a multi-hit game, going 2-for-2 with a pair of RBIs and a run scored to go with his home run.

Seth Hernandez got the loss for Reagan County after going just one-and-a-third innings where he allowed five runs on six hits.

The Hawks improve to 19-4 and 7-1 in District 4-3A while the Owls fall to 18-6-1 and 6-2 in district play, one game behind Wall with two games left to play.

The Hawks will host TLCA this Friday at 4 p.m. while Reagan County hosts Sonora on Friday at 7 p.m.