On Tuesday Feb. 21 the freshman baseball team took to the West Forsyth field and ultimately secured a win over the Wolverines with a final score of 9-3. Hard work and team communication helped lead the team to a victory in their first of two games against West.

Before the game, the team met for batting warm-ups and a team meeting to put players in the game day headspace. Freshman Lane McBurnett explains how the team prepared for the games saying, “[We] practice hard during the week and stay calm.” The team practices five to six times a week so they are fully prepared for any opponent they face.

The team gained momentum very quickly as a single to left field put a runner on base for the Raiders and sac fly ball for the second out allowed the runner to tag up and score the first run. The Raiders finished their first at bat leading the game 1-0. 

Freshman Hank Ray took to the mound first for the Raiders, shutting down the attempts of the Wolverines with 3 quick outs to put his team back up to bat. The second inning brought a sac fly and a line drive single past the second baseman, letting the Raiders scored two more runs, making the score 3-0 at the end of the second inning. 

With Ray continuing to pitch and a strong batting line-up, the Raiders continued their scoring streak, going on to score three more runs by the time the fifth inning was over. Ray, losing energy on the mound, was pulled and replaced by #17 Colton Croft. 

Croft continued on the pattern Ray had set, allowing no runs to score with the help of a strong infield defense and magnetic gloves in the outfield. In the batters box, the Raiders grew their lead to 9-0 at the end of the 7th inning. 

The 8th inning brought a shift for the Raiders as a new pitcher was put in and bases became loaded for the Wolverines. 3 consecutive walks brought in 3 runs for West and ended the shutout with a new score of 9-3. 

Though they did let a few runs score, the Raiders were not defeated and left the field with a victorious attitude. After the game, Parker Aucoin shared his favorite moment of the game. “My single up the middle (was my favorite part),” he said. Each member of the team celebrated both their personal successes and the team’s overall triumph. 

The team was extremely excited about their 9-3 win over the West Forsyth Wolverines and will remember this feeling when they face them again on Thursday Feb. 24.