The Hillsboro Hawks are having a remarkable turnaround season. After going just 8-15 last year, they are now sitting at 19-4 in 2023. New Head Coach Matt Thompson has certainly given this program a jolt and the Hawks look like they could be very dangerous with the District Tournament right around the corner.
This week, to close out the regular season, Hillsboro took down the Jefferson Blue Jays 7-4 on Wednesday before blanking the then 18-2 Central Rebels 3-0 for their ninth consecutive victory. Things really seem to be clicking for the Hawks, and that spells trouble for their tournament competition.
The game against R7 on Wednesday started out a bit rocky, with the Blue Jays going up 2-0 in the top of the first, but Hillsboro rebounded in the second. They got on the board with a Gavin Hite single that was helped by an error to bring in the first run. Then a Jaxon Day RBI hit knotted the game up at two.
The Hawks would tack on two more in the next frame, taking advantage of some more Jefferson miscues and a timely hit by Gunner Sutton. That gave them a 4-2 lead, but Jefferson responded in the top of the fifth two two of their own to tie the game at 4-all.
Dominic Sutton broke the tie in the bottom of the fifth though with a line shot to left. He then worked his way around the bases and stole home to give Hillsboro a two-run lead. In a wild inning with the bases loaded, Day drew a walk and put the Hawks up 7-4 to close out the scoring on the day.
The pitching was a bit troublesome in the beginning with Zach Reynolds and Samuel Wahl getting touched for two runs apiece, but Dane Dickemann came in to close out the final two innings and earn the save. G. Sutton was the only player with multiple hits, going 2-for-2 with an RBI, Day drove in two and D. Sutton had an RBI while stealing three bases.
That set up a trip to Park Hills and pitted the Hawks against arguably their most formidable opponent this season, the 18-2 Central Rebels. And this one was all about pitching. D. Sutton was on the mound and managed to completely stymie the Central offense. He went all seven innings, didn’t allow a run and walked just one. He only allowed three hits (all singles) and struck out four. It was an incredibly well deserved win for the talented hurler.
The offense came from an error in the second inning that led to a run, and then two more in the third on a bases loaded single by Day to put Hillsboro up 3-0. That was all they would need with D. Sutton throwing darts and they hung on for the huge win.
Reynolds had a nice day at the plate with a 3-for-3 performance and Jaxin Patterson went 2-for-4 as the only other player with multiple hits. But the big blow was the single by Day to put the game to bed.
Hillsboro will look to keep the momentum flowing in the right direction and extend their win streak in the District Tournament next week. Ten in a row would be a heck of a way to kick off the tourney for the top seed.
