San Antonio Express-News (Sunday)
Big fifth inning propels Rattlers to victory
In a battle for pole position in the District 28-6A race, Reagan rode an eight-run fifth inning to defeat Johnson 14-5 Friday night at North East Stadium.
“It was an all-around team effort,” Rattlers coach Chans Chapman said. “We didn’t play perfect by any means, but they’ve got a really good team. I’m really proud of our kids.”
Teagan Peeples went 3-4 with a double, three RBIs, a run scored and a walk, while Andrew Ermis finished 2-2 with a double, two walks, two runs scored and a stolen base to lead the Rattlers at the plate.
Reagan (13-3-2, 6-0) took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning, with Peeples opening the scoring on an RBI single up the middle. The Jaguars answered in the bottom half of the frame with four runs on four hits, including a base hit to right field from designated hitter Rohan Naik that brought home a couple of runs.
Johnson (11-2, 4-1) extended its lead to 5-2 in the bottom of the second inning on an error that brought home freshman Kayson Cunningham for the second time in as many innings.
“They’ve got a really good team,” Chapman said. “They kinda had us on the ropes there in the second inning, or even the first inning, and we were able to limit the damage. My kids kept fighting, man. We talk about it all the time, and they did it tonight.”
Looking to quiet the Johnson bats, Reagan turned to reliever Billy Baehr in the third inning, and the senior managed to halt the Jaguars’ momentum.
“That was big because the game was moving pretty fast, and there was a lot happening,” Chapman said. “He kinda got in there and slowed the game down for us where we could kinda regroup and catch our breath. He kinda calmed them down and gave us some scoreless innings, and we were able to get going.”
Baehr finished the rest of the game, tossing four scoreless innings and surrendering three hits and two walks as the Rattlers’ offense rallied behind him.
The turning point at the plate came when Peeples drilled a line drive into the left-center gap for a two-RBI double, pulling the Rattlers to within one.
“When Teagan got the double to score two runs to get us to 5-4, that kind of got us going again,” Chapman said. “That got momentum back on our side. That was a big hit in the game, ’cause they had all the momentum and we were trying to find our way at the time. We got the momentum back, and we never let it go.”
In the top of the fifth, Reagan capitalized on a pair of crucial
Johnson mistakes — an error at home plate and a bases-loaded walk — to take a 6-5 lead. Britton Moore floated a sacrifice fly into center field to bring home another run and widen the Rattlers’ lead to two.
Brennan Greer added a couple of insurance runs for Reagan with a hard-hit liner into the gap, and back-to-back wild pitches scored two more as the Rattlers took
control at 11-5. Johnson’s third error of the inning plated another as Reagan finished the fifth inning with eight runs on just three hits.
“We swung the bats really well,” Chapman said. “We had good at-bats. We were getting hits, and they were making some mistakes and they were walking us, and we were making them pay for it.”
With the win, Reagan assumed position at the top of District 28-6A, while Johnson slipped to second place.
“We knew that tonight was a big game, being that we’re both undefeated,” Chapman said. “We’ve still got a couple more left. This hasn’t gotten us anywhere or clinched any playoff spots or anything, but it was a big win for my kids.”