By Moses Leos III
From the first inning to the last, Tuesday, the Hays Rebels slammed on the gas pedal and didn’t look back.
Sixteen hits, which included four home runs, highlighted Hays dominant 17-0 win over the Lehman Lobos at Lobo Field.
Hays wasted little time in scoring runs as they put up four in the first inning. Guiding the Rebels was senior first baseman Brandon Hunter, who highlighted the inning with a three-run home run to left field.
“I was waiting for the high fastball, and just tried to put a good swing on it and not do too much,” Hunter said. “The rest takes care of itself.”
Hunter said Hays’ performance at the plate helped build the team’s confidence. Rebel pitcher Mike Gonzales said getting off to a quick start was key.
“We’ve always been told that great teams put them away early,” Gonzales said. “We came out with the mentality that we’ve got to jump on them now and keep the gas pedal on.”
On the defensive side, Gonzales proved dominant as he held Lehman to one hit in a complete game, shutout effort.
Gonzales said mixing his off-speed pitches and his fastball kept Lehman batters off-balance. Hays head coach James Howard said Gonzales had “good velocity” on the mound and was effective in changing speeds.
But for Gonzales, the game “wasn’t for me, it was for the team.”
“It was just me out there playing catch with my catcher and trying to execute pitches … and get off the hill as quickly as I could,” Gonzales said.
On the opposite end, Lehman bats couldn’t catch up to Gonzales. One of their best opportunities at scoring a run came in the bottom of the third frame when they manufactured a runner to second base.
Gonzales, however, pitched out of the inning to end the threat. Hays’ Josh Burnett followed in the next half inning by hitting a solo home run to give Hays a commanding 5-0 advantage.
From there, Hays’ offense peppered Lehman’s pitching staff by scoring 12 runs over the final three innings.
“We always preach to the guys … if you get that pitch you’re looking for, you’re sitting on that pitch, get your best swing on it early in the count,” Howard said.
Hays held a 9-0 lead after six innings. The Rebels followed by adding eight more runs in the top of the seventh frame.
Highlighting the eight run salvo was a two run home run by second baseman Tyler Wilson.
“It’s a good win against a quality team,” H oward said. “It does well for our confidence to put up so many runs tonight, but we’re also playing well defensively.”
Lehman hosts Crockett in a non-district game on Monday, while Hays hosts Westlake on Tuesday.
