4/1/23
The Hennessey Baseball Eagles took 3rd place in this year’s 39th Annual Hennessey Baseball Tournament, defeating the two-time defending tournament champion Stillwater Pioneers 9-1 in the Saturday matchup.
The Eagles opened the tournament with a 9-5 come-from-behind victory over the Cashion Wildcats, with Senior 3B Sebastian Gonzalez leading the way at the plate, going 2 for 4 with 1 run scored, 1 RBI, and a stolen base, one of 6 total steals on the day for the Eagles. Westyn Hopkins also went 2 for 4 with the bat, with 1 double and 1 run scored.
Hopkins started for the Eagles on the mound, pitching 4 innings, giving up only 2 hits and 3 earned runs, striking out 8 Wildcats. Adin Dickens got the win in relief, with only 1 hit allowed over 2 innings, walking 1 and striking out 4.
Pitching and hitting statistics were out the window (literally) in the Friday game between the Eagles and the Fairview Yellowjackets, with 50 mph sustained winds with higher gusts causing havoc on the base paths and on the pitching rubber.
Eagles dropped the winners bracket round two game by a football score of 29-16, led by Gonzalez going 3 for 3 with a double, 4 RBI, 2 runs scored, and walking once, but the offensive highlight for the Eagles came in the 3rd inning when Sophomore Left Fielder Kevin Trillo hit a line shot right-center field gapper for an inside the park grand slam home run. Trillo, now hitting .391 on the season and a team-best .632 on base percentage, finished the Friday loss going 1 for 3, with 3 runs scored, and 5 RBI.
Regan Sturgill took the loss on the mound, giving up 7 hits and 4 walks, striking out 1.
Saturday’s 3rd place game was all Eagles from start to finish. Senior corner infielder Langston Smith set the pace going 3 for 3 from the plate (all doubles), scoring 1, and knocking in 2.
Jakob Johns got the start, but under a limited pitch count went 1 1/3rd innings, giving up 1 hit while walking 2, with 3 strike outs, before giving way to Jarrett Smith, who got the win, striking out 6 Pioneers, allowing 1 hit and 1 walk in 2.2 innings. Junior reliever Cale Dickens finished off the visitors with a perfect 1-2-3 5thinning to close out the tournament with a 9-1 run rule.
The Crescent Tigers won the tournament with a 19-11 win over the Fairview Yellowjackets.
