Kennedale Wildcat Baseball ended its playoff season early this year after losing only one game in district play and capturing their first district title since 2013. {{more: READ MORE …}}
The young Cats were greatly improved this year by the strong arms of their pitching rotation and the even stronger arms at the plate. In district play, the Cats outscored their opponents 124 to 21 and pitched 6 shutouts in 12 games. This worked out an average of 10.3 runs per game for the Wildcats and 1.8 runs per games against.
It is true that they played in a weaker district this year but the Cats really matured from the opening day until the final game of the season. The Cats finished at 17-10, a complete reverse of last year?s record. And, things look good for next year as they graduated only 2 starters off of this year’s team.Bi-District loss …
But, their luck this year was to draw an old nemesis, the Stephenville Yellow Jackets, in the first round of the playoffs. Stephenville and Kennedale had played four times in the last two years with the Yellow Jackets walking away with wins in three of those games, including two this year.
Stephenville entered the playoffs as a fourth seed from District 8-4A but that was misleading. District 8-4A was one of the toughest district in the region with the likes of Godley, Alvarado, Midlothian Heritage and the Yellow Jackets.The Wildcats and the Yellow Jackets agreed to play a best of three series with Stephenville hosting the first game and Kennedale the last two as needed. Kennedale Head Coach Paul Trantham was counting on a third game. He figured that the depth of his pitching would win out. He never got to prove it, Stephenville won 2-0. But, the second game went down to the wire and then into an extra inning when the Cats rallied to forge a tie in the bottom of the 7th.
Game story ?
Friday, May 5 Kennedale @ Stephenville 2-7 (L)
- Stephenville started out strong, scoring 4 runs in the 1st followed with a run in the 4th and then two more in the 5th. Meanwhile, the Cats scored twice all in the 2nd having trouble finding a weak spot in the pitching of Stephenville?s Caleb Smith.
- Kennedale?s two runs came when Reed Saenz reached on a fielder?s choice (bunt) and was advanced by a Bryce Hackett single. Ethan Wood followed with a walk that loaded the bases. It was a Cole Caruthers single that scored both Saenz and Hackett before the inning ended.
- The Wildcats scored 2 runs on 3 hits and committed 2 errors leaving 3 on base. The Yellow Jackets scored 7 runs with 7 hits with no errors, leaving 3.
- For the game, Wildcat Jared Taylor went 5 innings allowing 7 runs on 6 hits, facing 24, throwing 56 strikes in 88 pitches, striking out 4 and walking one. Cade Thompson pitched one inning faced 4 batters, striking out 2 while allowing a single hit.
- Getting hits for Kennedale were Cole Carruthers with 2RBIs, Bryce Hackett and Brandon Jones.
Saturday, May 6 Kennedale vs Stephenville 4-6 (L)
- Stephenville started slower in the second game, having more trouble with the pitching of Bryce Hackett. Stephenville scored once in the 2nd and again in the 3rd before Kennedale got on the board in the 5th with a single run. The Cats gave up two more runs in the top of the 6th, falling behind 4-1.
Rally begins …
- In the bottom half, Zach Sisemore started a two inning rally with a single. Bryce Hackett followed with a fielder?s choice single that left Sisemore as the odd man out. But the Cats quickly filled the bases with a Jared Taylor walk and a single by Cole Carruthers. Austin Crabtree grounded into a fielder?s choice and courtesy runner Savala Swanson was thrown out at home but courtesy runner Cade Thompson managed to score during the resulting play. That would end the scoring for the 6th but at 4-2 the Cats were not finished.
- In the top of the 7th, the Cats did what they had to do and shutdown the Yellow Jackets with Hackett still on the mound. Stephenville went 0-3 at the plate with a strikeout and two fly-outs.
- Needing two to tie and three to win the Cats responded. First batter Brayden Sewell reached on a fly ball error to left field. Aaron Herrera followed with a hard hit single to center field. The third batter for Kennedale, Brandon Jones singled on a fly ball to left field and scored Sewell. The score was now 4-3 and the Cats had no outs and had both the tying and the winning run on base.
- Wildcat batter #4, Reed Saenz, was walked after being hit by a pitch, filling the bases once more for the Cats. The Cats got their first out of the inning on a Hackett infield fly but the bases remained filled. Cade Thompson then hit into a fielder?s choice that allowed Herrera to score and tied the game at 4-4 but that ended the scoring for Kennedale.
- The Cats rally died in the 8th when they allowed The Yellow Jackets to score two more runs that they could not match and the game and the season ended in the bottom of the 8th going swinging with a fly out and two ground outs.
- Kennedale had 4 runs on 8 hits with three errors and leaving 10 on base. Stephenville scored 6 runs on 9 hits with no errors and left 4 on base.
- Bryce Hackett faced 30 batters, throwing 74 strikes in 102 pitches, allowing 6 runs on 8 hits, striking out 7 and walking 1 in 7 innings on the mound. Brayden Sewell faced 4 batters, throwing 15 strikes in 19 pitches, allowing one hit, no runs and striking out 2.
- Seven Wildcats had hits in the game with JD Padgett getting multiple hits (4/2) with a double plus a walk. Also getting hits were Brayden Sewell and a walk; Aaron Herrera with a RBI and a walk; Brandon Jones with a RBI; Zac Sisemore; Cole Carruthers and Austin Crabtree with a RBI.
Note: Stephenville has made it to the quarterfinal round but must face fellow district team and district champion, Godley, in a best of three this weekend.
