McLean baseball, fresh off back-to-back playoff wins, faced the Herndon Hornets at a neutral turf field in the district finals, looking to hoist the district banner once again. Herndon was a team that McLean was quite confident against, having beaten them twice prior.
“The game plan was honestly just play our game the way we know how to,” junior catcher Wyatt Batdorf said. “We’ve beaten them twice and we knew what to expect.”
The Highlanders were off their game early, with sophomore pitcher Alex Inget letting one runner get a hit and going down one run. Inget began to settle in by getting two consecutive strike outs, ending the top of the first.
The Highlanders offense followed the same trend, being inconsistent and striking out three times in the first three batters and finishing the first inning down one.
Despite the glimpses of good pitching from Inget, the Highlanders were still unable to stop the Hornets at the top of the second. McLean was not fully in the game and struggled to make simple infield plays. Although Herndon did not score, it was obvious that they were the better team.
The hitting was the same for the Highlanders, with three quick outs ending the second inning, Highlanders 0 and Herndon 1.
“We definitely kept good vibes,” sophomore pitcher Charlie Coats said. “Getting down on ourselves benefits us in no way and we know that.”
The third went by quickly with little action on both sides of the ball keeping it 0-1.
The fourth inning started a trend of good defense for the Highlanders, with a quick strikeout followed by two throws to first for the next two outs.
The offense was much the same with a lead-off single by senior outfielder JW Riggins and another by senior catcher Reid Turner. Sophomore designated hitter Carter Jones then gets a deep ball to the outfield to drive Riggins home and tie the game at 1-1.
Outfielder Adam Wormington loaded the bases with a single of his own, but two consecutive outs ended the inning 1-1.
“We shifted our game plan by stringing together a few hits and getting contact,” Coats said.
The fifth kept the same defensive trend, with McLean making quick work of Herndon’s hitters. The offense, however, did not look the same, with only Riggins making it onto base after two outs, and a strikeout looking ended the inning, still 1-1.
The last two innings were dominated by the Hornets. Herndon scored a run to make the game 2-1, and it snowballed from there with the Highlanders not being able to execute. Although a pitcher change in the seventh had Riggins pitching, it was not enough; the Herndon Hornets took the win 2-1 and the District title.
“There was nothing specific we struggled with,” Batdorf said. “It was good baseball, and I think the ball just fell in their direction one too many times.”
Although McLean didn’t win the district, their season is not over as they got second in the district, qualifying them for regionals.
“For regionals, we want to keep improving as a team, and knowing what our goals are individually helps us get there,” Coats said.
