The varsity baseball team suffered a 2-0 loss to Weddington on Tuesday.
Although the team lost the game, Coach Hank Harris said the team put forth a great effort. “I think we were a little too aggressive, and swung through some pitches,” he said. “We didn’t sit back and trust our hands. Their pitcher had us off balance, but I thought we rallied well.”
The team continues to improve. “We’re getting there, and we’re getting better and better,” Harris said. “I’m not pleased with the loss, but I’m pleased with the effort.”
Harris said that D’Angelo Tyson pitched “outstandingly” well. “I couldn’t have asked for a better pitcher,” he said. “He did very well, and our defense was solid.”
Harris said that Tyson added about 3-5 m.p.h. to his pitching through careful practice, and that the results have shown. “He just did a great job,” he said. “He did an outstanding job. We’ve just got to put hits and runs behind him and get him some wins.”
Tyson’s attitude helps as much as his talent. “He’s one of those kids that when you teach him something, he’s very coachable,” Harris said. “He buys into what we’re teaching him, and it showed today. His effort, his determination, he’s a wonderful kid, and somebody that you know would be useful on any pitching staff on our conference. He’s a little discouraged now because he’s not swinging the bat as well, but he does a great job for us on the mound, and his bat will come back around. He’s all over the zone. He pounds the zone really hard. His curveball is just ungodly. I mean, it’s a beautiful curveball. It’s almost unhittable.”
Tyson said that the team’s defense against Weddington was strong. “They only had two runs,” he said. “I wish our bats were working at the time, but sometimes that’s how games go. The bats not working, but the defense looked good. We need to take the defense into the plate with the same intensity that we have in the defense.”
He will make improving his batting one of his top priorities. “At first, starting out the season, my batting average was strong,” Tyson said. “And then, working with the pitching machine, we’re used to hitting that. It’s only like 20 feet, so I think that’s what threw my hitting off, so I’m working on that.”
Tyson also counted the 2-0 loss to Weddington as an achievement. “That 2-0 made me feel good because it seemed like I pitched good and my defense played good,” he said. “We’ve just got to work on our hitting more.”
The team will play at Weddington in Matthews at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, and against them at home on Friday at 7 p.m.
JV
The JV team won its game against Weddington 12-7 on Tuesday, providing an important victory for the team.
This was the team’s first conference win this year, and its third win of the season. “It’s not the biggest margin we’ve won by, but it’s our biggest win,” coach Dave Ekis said. “To beat Weddington is a really big achievement, and the boys did a great job.”
Ekis praised LaQuan Davis for his pitching in all six innings. “He also had a couple of hits, including a double, and a couple of RBIs,” he said. “He was strong on the plate as well as on the mound.”
He also praised CJ Hyatt. “The third baseman injured his back in the third inning, so we moved Hyatt there,” Ekis said. “He also had a strong hit and a couple RBIs. He contributed on the field and at the plate.”
The team has only three games left this season. “This was great, especially because JV doesn’t have post-season,” Ekis said. “This was a really good confidence booster going into the summer and next year. We’re getting better as a team.”
Ekis has lost some players to the varsity team. Will Dagenhart, who has played shortstop for the team, just moved up to varsity last week. “A lot of teams would’ve put their heads down and been upset about it, but our team has looked at it as an opportunity,” he said.
This win gives the team a 3-12 season and a 1-6 conference.
The team will play against Weddington at home again at 4:30 p.m. on Friday.