Baseball

War Eagles win 2 of 3 to improve to 13-9

By By KEITH ANDERSON WHS Baseball Coach

The War Eagles won 2 of 3 games this past week to improve to 13-9 on the season.
The WarEagle Varsity baseball team lost a close one up at North Florida Christian last Tuesday evening. The War Eagles carried a 5-3 lead into the bottom of the 7th inning, but North Florida strung two groundball base hits together to tie the game up, then end the game in walkoff fashion.
Starter Leaston Spears threw well for WHS, scattering 3 hits and 3 strikeouts in his outing through 4 innings. Hayden Wright went 2 innings giving up no hits, but allowed the winning runs on with an out in the seventh before Gavin Estep came in to close. Estep quickly struck a hitter out for the 2nd out, but then as luck would have it, two seeing eye groundballs made it through the infield to tie and win the game 6-5 for North Florida. Parker Lawhon led the hitters going 3-3. Colby Zinser, Josiah Pierini, Reid Joyner, Garrett Veltkamp, and Michael Hurley all had hits in the game.
The War Eagles traveled to Bozeman High School to take on the Buck who are ranked No. 2 in the state in their classification.
Starter Gavin Estep dominated from start to finish striking out 3 with no walks in the 2-hit shut out. He only needed 70 pitches to throw the complete game and the Bucks only managed 3 baserunners who never got past first base.
The War Eagles racked up 9 hits. Michael Hurley led the hitters going 3-3. Parker Lawhon was 2-3, Colby Zinser was 2-4, and Sam Bruce also had a single. The big blow of the game came when second baseman Reid Joyner hit a towering 3 run homerun to the leftcenter gap to seal the 5-0 lead.
On Friday the War Eagles hosted Florida State University High School. War Eagle starter Reid Joyner was removed in the middle of the first inning due to shoulder soreness.
Down a run, Jesse Nazworth came in the ball game and pitched the next 4 innings and a third innings with a solid relief appearance scattering 6 hits and giving up only 1 run. Sophomore submariner Hayden Wright came on in relief of Nazworth to throw 2 shutout innings giving up 0 hits striking out three. The War Eagles went to the 7th down 2-1. Michael Hurley led off with a single. Parker Lawhon sacrifice bunted him over to second. Colby Zinser singled the tying run in and moved up to second on the throw. That brough Freshman Sam Bruce to the plate. He hit a sharp single through the middle to score Zinser in walkoff fashion for thewin 3-2. Hayden Wright received the win on the mound. The War Eagles racked up 9 hits on the evening. Colby Zinser, Sam Bruce, and Micael Hurley all had 2 hits each.
Brady Crum, Reid Joyner, and Josiah Pierini all chipped in a hit apiece.