One of the best seasons in Whitman baseball history came to an exciting close on Thursday afternoon as the (14-7) Vikings lost 6-4 to Gaithersburg in the semifinals of the 4A West tournament.

Playing their third game in as many days, the hot-hitting Vikings jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the second inning of the game, played at Gaithersburg. But the Trojans nibbled away at the lead with a lethal combination of small ball, timely hits, and dominate pitching from Clemson-bound Kevin Brady.

Brian Gobish singled up the middle to open the second inning. After Max Hilbert and Brantley Hester were hit by pitches to load the bases, Gaithersburg brought in a relief pitcher. Chris Kelly greated him with a ground ball to second that scored one run. Then Mike Lee hit a grounder to short that the shortstop couldn't handle, bringing home another run. Danny Lee and Ethan Thompson followed with RBI singles to make it 4-0.

Gaithersburg brought in flame-throwing Kevin Brady to get the final out of the inning. Brady, who had thrown five innings the day before, and could only throw five in this game, gave way to a reliever in the sixth inning but came back in the seventh to get the final three outs. The Vikings were able to muster only a couple hits off him.

Gaithersburg's margin of victory would have been greater, if not for some slick Whitman fielding. Thompson threw a runner out from his knees behind second in the second inning. And shortstop Matt Kaler made two fine plays in the hole to cut short rallies. In the second, with runners on first and second, Pitcher Reid Kellam feigned a throw to third, then turned to get the runner on first in a rundown. Kellam threw the ball to Thompson who ran the runner back two steps then gunned the ball home to nail the runner from third who was trying to score.

The Walt Whitman Vikings (12-6) lit up the Blake Bengals (13-5) for nine runs in the first two innings and hung onto a 9-7 victory on Wednesday night to advance to the semifinals of the 4A West tournament, the first time a Whitman team has gone this far since 2005.

In 2005, as in 2008, Whitman’s semifinal opponent will be Gaithersburg, one of the top-ranked teams in the metro area. Gaithersburg prevailed over Whitman 5-4 in a hard-fought contest earlier this year. The teams will play at Gaithersburg at 4 p.m. on Thursday.

Walt Whitman erupted for three runs in the first inning off Blake’s previously undefeated Anthony Hanagan. Ethan Thompson, who had three hits on the day, led off with an infield single. Following a walk to Daniel Novak, Matt Kaler ripped his first of two opposite-field doubles to score two runs. Max Hilbert eventually brought Kaler home on a fielder’s choice.

But the Bengals clawed right back in the bottom of the inning on a long, two-run homer by clean-up hitter Ryan Rehman.

Fortunately, the Vikings weren’t done pounding the ball. They sent 11 men to the plate in the second inning, scoring six runs. Thompson opened the festivities by belting a curveball over the left-field fence, scoring Danny Lee, who had doubled. Novak singled up the middle, advanced to third on a second double by Kaler, and came home on a wild pitch. After Hilbert walked to make it first and third, Brantley Hester singled sharply through the hole between short and third to drive in the fourth run. Brothers Mike and Danny Lee followed with consecutive two-out RBI singles to make it 9-2.

Blake came right back with two more runs in the bottom of the second to make it 9-4, and it looked like a slugfest was on. But Danny Williams entered in the bottom of the third and finally retired the Bengals in order. Even so, Blake managed to score three runs in the fourth inning to pull within 9-7. Brian Gobish came on in relief in the fifth inning and retired the last eight batters to earn the save. He gave up only one hit.

The Vikings played another outstanding defensive game in recording their fourth win in a row. Jesse Mates fielded four balls flawlessly at third base. Shortstop Kaler made several tough plays on ground balls. Second baseman Thompson snagged a hard liner that seemed destined for right field in the first inning. Danny Lee blocked virtually every errant pitch behind the plate. And Whitman's outfielders made several sterling catches.

Senior Brian Gobish drove in four runs and picked up the win in relief, leading Walt Whitman (11-6) to a 6-2 victory over Walter Johnson in the first round of the Montgomery County 4A playoffs on a beautiful spring afternoon at Whitman.

Junior Ethan Thompson pitched the first five innings. He struck out five Wildcats, four of them looking, and three to end innings. He gave up only one hit through four innings. Walter Johnson finally got to him in the fifth inning, scoring two runs when two men were out to tie the score.

But the Vikings, as they’ve done all season, came back in the bottom of the sixth inning to re-take the lead. Brant Hester walked and Chris Kelly singled sharply down the right-field line. Sophomore catcher Danny Lee singled sharply to right to make it 3-2. Thompson reached out and belted an outside pitch to right field to plate the second run. Then, with two outs and runners on second and third, Gobish drove a ball through the hole on the left side to make it 6-2.

The Vikings broke open a pitcher’s duel in the bottom of the third, when Thompson singled and Matt Kaler walked. The runners moved up on two wild pitches. Then Gobish delivered a single to the gap in right-center to score two runs.

Coach Joe Cassidy started what was perhaps his best defensive team and the Vikings responded with some sparkling plays in the field. Right fielder Mike Lee quelled a rallied in the fourth with a diving catch for the final out. Thompson ranged deep behind second base to corral a pop fly in the sixth. Catcher Danny Lee blocked several tough pitches in the dirt to prevent runners from advancing. And Daniel Novak retreated to the warning track in left field to snare the final out of the game.

Gobish came on in relief to get the final six outs. The win provided further proof that strong pitching, good defense, and timely hitting are a lethal combination. The Vikings advance to play at Blake in the second round on Wednesday night at 7.

Gazette Covers Whitman Win at Nationals Park

Whitman defeated Blair on Monday night, 8-2, behind the strong pitching of Reid Kellam, who went 6.1 innings and only gave up four hits without walking a man.

The Vikings brought their bats to this game, to be sure. They opened the game lining base hits around the park and hit several shots into its farthest reaches.

Matt Kaler tripled off the fence, ripped a scorching single up the middle, and scored three times. Daniel Novak recorded three hits and scored twice. Catcher Danny Lee had his best game of the season, with a single, a double, and a runner thrown out trying to steal at second base.

This may have the Vikings’ best defensive game of the season. Jesse Mates, playing third, recorded at least four assist, several on sharply hit ground balls. Kaler played an excellent game at shortstop. The outfield ran down several tough fly balls, and Lee made all the plays behind the plate.

In the third inning, with the Vikings up 1-0, Novak singled with one out and Kaler hit a long triple off the very top of the wall in right to drive him in. A Brian Gobish sac fly made it 3-0.

Lee doubled with one out in the 4th, and Mates drove him home with a single through a drawn-in infield. Ethan Thompson doubled home the second run of the inning when he drove the ball over the left-fielder’s head to the wall. He scored on a single by Novak to make it 6-1.

Blair mounted a mild threat in the bottom of the fourth, putting runners on second and third with one out. But Reid struck out the next batter. Then, after hitting a Blazer to load the bases, struck out another batter looking to end the inning.

Gobish came on in relief in the seventh inning to retire the final two batters.

The Walt Whitman Vikings scored two times in the top of the sixth inning to tie their game against Magruder at four. But the Colonels came back with six runs in the bottom of the inning, aided by a critical error, to put the game out of reach and record a 10-4 victory on Senior Day at Magruder.

The Vikings broke on top with a run in the first inning. Ethan Thompson walked, stole second, went to third on a groundout to short, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Matt Kaler. The Vikings made it 2-0 in the second when Mike Lee stroked a double and came home on a single down the right-field line by Danny Williams.

Magruder scored three times in the third and another time in the fourth to take a 4-2 lead. But Whitman rallied in the sixth to tie the game. Kaler hit his second double and eventually scored on a passed ball. Later in the inning, Brantley Hester walked, took second and third on passed balls, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Chris Kelly.

Williams pitched well for Whitman, giving up only three earned runs and five hits over five innings. He was victimized, however, by some defensive lapses that prolonged innings. Also, the Vikings could have scored several more runs early in the game. Magruder's catcher threw out two Whitman runners trying to steal and its outfielders cut down two runners at the plate on strong throws.

The Walt Whitman Vikings led for most of their game at home against Wootton on Thursday night, but couldn't hold on in the final innings and wound up losing 5-2. With the loss, the Vikings' record dropped to 9-6, 7-6 in division play, with only three games left in the season.

Ethan Thompson, making his first start of the season, didn't allow a Wootton baserunner until the fourth inning. He also drove in the first run of the game in the third inning. After Jesse Mates reached on an error and Danny Lee singled, Thompson laced a pitch down the right-field line to score Mates. Lee came home on a sacrifice fly by Dan Novak to make it 2-0 Whitman.

It stayed that way until the fifth inning, when Thompson got into a jam, giving up three hits in a row. With one run home and runners on first and second, Thompson struck out a batter for the first out. He coaxed a ground ball to third baseman Brant Hester for the second out. First baseman Brian Gobish flipped to Thompson covering first for the final out.

Thompson ran out of steam in the sixth inning, allowing the first two batters to reach. They both eventually came around to score to put Wootton ahead 3-2. Wootton tacked on two more runs, both unearned, in the seventh inning.

The first two Whitman runners reached in the bottom of the seventh inning. But a double-play and a game-ending come-backer to the pitcher made a winner out of Wootton, which had beaten undefeated Quince Orchard the day before.

Talk about pressure situations. Whitman's hopes of winning Tuesday night's game against Sherwood came down to one player, junior Dan Novak, who came to the plate in the bottom of the seventh inning, down by one run, with two outs and the bases loaded.

Novak, who had a bunt single and a walk in three previous at-bats, fouled the first pitch down the third baseline. He took the second pitch for a ball. He stroked the third pitch up the middle. It rolled just beyond the outstretched glove of Sherwood's shortstop and into center field, allowing two runs to score and giving Whitman a 7-6 victory.

Novak's late-inning heroics improved Whitman's record to 9-5, 7-5 in division play. Matt Kaler picked up the win in relief of sophomore starter Reid Kellam, who pitched six fabulous innings for the Vikings. Kellam retired the last 10 batters he faced.

Whitman jumped on top in the first inning when Max Hilbert reached on an error, advanced to second on a single by Matt Kaler, and came home on a second error by the third baseman.

Sherwood (8-4) struck for four runs in the third inning and maintained a 4-1 lead until the bottom of the fifth, when Whitman scored an unearned run. Jesse Mates reached on an error by the second baseman and eventually came home on a two-out single by Hilbert.

Whitman took the lead in the bottom of the sixth. The Vikings loaded the bases on a single by Brant Hester and two walks. Pinch-hitter Brian Gobish drove in the first two runs when he reached for an outside fastball and drove a single into right field. Ethan Warshowsky, also pinch-hitting, drove in the go-ahead run on a fielder's choice, narrowly beating a double-play throw to first. That made the score 5-4 Whitman.

But Sherwood came back with two runs in the top of the seventh on an error, a hit batsman, a timely single, and a sacrifice fly.

That set the stage for the bottom of the seventh. Max Hilbert, who collected two hits to lift his average above .500, was hit by a pitch to start the inning. He stole second with Matt Kaler at the plate. Kaler lined a shot down the third base line and beat the throw to first base to make it first-and-third. After Brant Hester struck out on a controversial pitch that looked outside, Chris Kelly walked to load the bases. The next hitter, Mike Lee, hit a ground ball to third. Sherwood's third baseman pegged home to get the force for the second out.

The bases were loaded, with two outs, when Novak connected to win the game.

Junior Danny Williams pitched a four-hit shutout and the Walt Whitman Vikings rolled to a 12-0 victory at Kennedy on Saturday afternoon to improve their record to 8-5, 6-5 in division play.

Williams, who didn't give up a hit until the fourth inning, struck out six and walked only two en route to the victory, his third of the year against one loss. Several of the strikeouts came on 3-2 change-ups. Williams kept the Cavalier hitters off-stride the entire game. He benefited from a strong Viking defense that didn't commit an error, despite choppy field conditions.

The Vikings got off to a slow start, stranding four baserunners in scoring position in the first three innings. They scored a run in the first, when Brant Hester ripped a double to left-center with two out, scoring Max Hilbert, who had singled. Hester drove in the second run of the game, too, lifting a sacrifice fly to deep center that scored Hilbert, who had tripled to deep right to open the inning.

Whitman finally broke the game open in the fourth inning. Daniel Novak and sophomore Danny Lee, getting the start at catcher, singled. Williams dumped a single into right to score one run. A second scored when Ethan Thompson laid down a bunt between first base and the pitcher's mound.

Then, with two men on, Matt Kaler delivered the big blow--a three-run homer to right that rolled to the wall, nearly 380 feet away. That made the score 7-0.

The Vikings tacked on a run in the sixth. Jason Weingardt led off by belting a single to left field. He came around to score on a deep fly to left by Jesse Mates that was ruled an error.

Whitman scored four more runs in the seventh inning to put the game out of reach. After Dan Fleshner and Williams walked, Weingardt hit a groundball to short that was bootted, allowing Flesher to score. Kaler followed with a double to right center that might have gone for a home run had the outfield not been playing so deep. The hit scored two runs. Kaler came home on a sharp single to left by Mates.

Hester made the play of the game on defense, ranging behind third base in the third inning to catch a ball over his shoulder. Hilbert ran down several fly balls in the outfield alleys. And Dan Lee played a strong game behind the plate, catching two foul-tips for strikeouts and making several great blocks of occasional errant curveballs.

In perhaps the most exciting game of the year, the Walt Whitman Vikings rallied twice from big deficits to beat Winston Churchill 11-10 on Thursday in a closely fought game that featured several heroic performances.

Brantley Hester hit a game-winning two-run homer in the sixth inning. Max Hilbert hit a three-run home run, tripled, stole home, drove in five runs, and raised his average close to the .500 mark. And Ethan Thompson pitched the final three innings to get the win for the Vikings, who improved to 7-5, 5-5 in division.

Whitman gave up four unearned runs in the first inning, after botching a first-and-third play that might have gotten them out of the inning. The Vikings caught a Bulldog in a rundown between home and third base, but an errant throw allowed him to score. Churchill went on to score three more times in the inning.

But the never-say-die Vikings came right back to score five runs in the next half inning and take a 5-4 lead. The crowning blow of the rally was a monster three-run home run by Max Hilbert that cleared the center-field fence, at least 370 feet away.

The Bulldogs, however, were far from done. They scored four more times in the third inning to retake the lead, 8-5.

Whitman pulled back within a run in the top of the fourth. After Hilbert tripled home Jesse Mates, who had reached on an error, Matt Kaler walked to make it first-and-third. With Brian Gobish at the plate, Kaler took off for second, which he reached safely. The moment the catcher released the throw, Hilbert came running home with the second run to make it 8-7.

The turning point in the game may have two defensive gems by Whitman in the bottom of the fourth inning. With runners on first and second, a Churchill batter hit a ball that center fielder Hilbert feigned to catch. The move froze the runner at second base. Hilbert picked up the ball and gunned him out at third.

The next batter hit a pop that fell into the Bermuda Triangle behind third base. Shortstop Matt Kaler picked up the ball and rifled a throw to third base, which pitcher Danny Williams had fortuitously thought to cover, for the second out. A pop-out to second base ended the inning.

With momentum on their side, the Vikings scored twice in the top of the fifth to retake the lead, 9-8. Dan Novak began the festivities by ripping a single to right field. Mates went to first after he was hit by a pitch. Thompson hit into a fielder's choice to make it first-and-third. With Hilbert at the plate, Whitman pulled off another double steal. This time the throw from the catcher went into center field. Novak scored and Thompson went to third. Hilbert followed with a single to score Thompson with the lead run.

Unfortunately, Churchill scored again in the bottom of the fifth to tie the game.

That set the stage for Hester, who strode to the plate with one runner on in the top of the sixth inning. He promptly ripped a pitch onto the embankment beyond the left-field fence to make it 11-9.

Thompson came on in relief in the fifth inning. Churchill pushed across one run in the bottom of the seventh to draw within a run. With the tying run on second, Thompson struck out the final batter to end the game.

Walt Whitman lost to arch-rival and undefeated Quince Orchard on Tuesday afternoon by a 10-4 score in a home game for the Vikings that was moved to QO due to wet conditions at Whitman.

The game seemed closer than it actually was. Each team had 12 hits, but Quince Orchard did a better job of delivering clutch blows to score runs. With the loss, Whitman's record dropped to 6-5, 4-5 in division.

The Vikings fell behind early, as the Cougars pushed across two runs in the first on a sac fly and a timely double. They added a run in the second inning and two more in the third to make it 5-0.

Whitman got onto the scoreboard in the fourth inning, when Brantley Hester stroked his second of three hits. Chris Kelly singled Hester to second, and he scored on a fielding error by the QO shortstop. Hester figured in Whitman's second run as well, singling to open the sixth, moving to second on a single by Danny Williams, and coming home on a sharp liner to right by pinch-hitter Daniel Fleshner.

The Vikings scored two more runs in the seventh. Max Hilbert recorded his second single of the game to lead off the inning. After Hilbert stole second, Matt Kaler brought him around the bases with a sharp line-drive to left. Kaler promptly stole second and later scored on a fly ball dropped by the right fielder.

The defensive highlight of the game for Whitman occurred in the fourth inning. With the bases loaded, Reid Kellam came on to relieve and coaxed a ground ball to third. Hester pegged home to force a runner at the plate and catcher Jesse Mates pegged to first to complete a 5-2-3 double play. Kellam got the final out of the inning on a pop fly to first.

Ethan Thompson came on in relief of Kellam in the sixth inning and retired the final four batters, most of them on change-ups.

Walter Johnson jumped out to an insurmountable 14-1 lead after three innings on several Walt Whitman miscues and withstood a late Viking rally to win 14-8 at home on Saturday afternoon.

Walt Whitman dug too deep a hole from which to emerge, giving up 7 unearned runs in the first three innings. The Vikings outscored the Wildcats 7-0 over the final four innings, but it wasn't enough to prevent the loss, which dropped Whitman's record to 6-4 on the season, 4-4 in division.

Walter Johnson only outhit the Vikings 16-12. Daniel Novak, Matt Kaler, and Ethan Thompson paced the Whitman attack with two hits apiece. Kaler homered to deep center in the third inning. The Vikings loaded the bases in the fourth inning and scored on a sacrifice fly by Reid Kellam and a two-run single by Thompson, who came all the way around to score when the ball skipped by the centerfielder.

The Vikings added two more runs in the fifth. Brian Gobish and Chris Kelly singled. Mike Lee plated one run with a sacrifice fly to center. Novak drove home the second run with his second hit of the day.

Michael Lee scored the final Whitman run in the seventh inning when he opened the frame with a single and scored on a double by Jesse Mates.

Senior Mike Lee pitched and hit the Walt Whitman Vikings to an 8-1 victory over Northwest at home on Wednesday night, avenging last season's loss to the Jaguars in the state playoffs. The victory improved Whitman's record to 6-3, 4-3 in division.

Lee displayed strong command of his breaking ball and fast ball, giving up only one earned run and four hits. He left the game after five innings, having thrown twice as many strikes as balls. Danny Williams came on to pitch the final two innings, allowing only one hit and striking out three of the six batters he faced.

Lee paced Whitman's hitting attack as well, stroking three singles and scoring a run.

The Vikings broke the game open in the second inning, scoring four times. Max Hilbert delivered the big blow--a bases-loaded triple that nearly reached the fence in right center. Dan Novak drove home the first run of the inning, scoring Brant Hester with a fielder's choice.

Whitman scored two more times in the third inning, after two were out. Chris Kelly and Lee both stroked singles to center. Then Dan Novak pulled the ball sharply down the right-field line to score Kelly. Jason Weingardt, running for Lee, scored when catcher Jesse Mates reached out and lined an outside fastball between first and second base for a single, one of his two hits.

The Vikings put the game away with two more runs in the sixth inning. With one out, Ethan Thompson walked for the third time of the night. Hilbert singled to right on a hit-and-run, with Thompson taking third. After Hilbert stole second, Matt Kaler hit a bullet through the infield to score Thompson. Brian Gobish followed with a ground ball to third that scored Hilbert.

Danny Williams pitched two great innings of relief to end the game. He frustrated the Northwest hitters with a combination of finely placed fastballs and slow curves.

Brian Gobish nearly pulled off a feat worthy of The Natural. He had already pitched six strong innings at Gaithersburg and collected two hits. Then, in the top of the seventh innning, with his team behind by a run, he knotted the score with a towering home run to left-center field, more than 365 feet away.

When the senior took the mound in the bottom of the inning, he had unfortunately thrown nearly 100 pitches. He ran out of steam, despite giving up only four hits during the entire game, and Gaithersburg eked out a 5-4 victory. With the loss, Whitman's record dropped to 5-3, 3-3 in league play.

Whitman jumped ahead in the first when Max Hilbert walked, advanced to second, and came home on a single up the middle by Gobish, who is hitting .483 on the season. Gaithersburg, which was ranked fourth in the metro area at the beginning of the season, countered with two runs in the bottom of the first to go ahead.

Whitman tied the game in the top of the third. Hilbert doubled and moved to third after an infield single by Gobish loaded the bases. He came home on a sacrifice fly by Brant Hester. But Gaithersburg came right back with two more runs to make it 4-2.

The Vikings plated another run in the sixth, when Ethan Thompson, who had two singles, hit a flair to right that drove in a run in the sixth inning. Dan Novak and Mike Lee also had two hits in the game.

After falling behind early, Walt Whitman battled back to earn a 7-6 victory at Poolesville on the strength of six strong innings from Junior Danny Williams (2-0).

Brantley Hester led the way offensively with a booming home run, a double, and four RBIs as Whitman improved its record to 5-2, 3-2 in division play.

After suffering a power outage in their previous game against Richard Montgomery, the Vikings pounded out 12 hits against Poolesville. Max
Hilbert, Matt Kaler, Brian Gobish, Mike Lee, and Hester each collected two hits.

Williams gave up only three earned runs and struck out six en route to the victory. He also reached base three times to raise his average to .400. Reid Kellam pitched the seventh inning to earn the save.

Poolesville led 3-1 after the first inning, but the Vikings scored twice to knot the score in the third. They scored once in the fourth, and three times in the fifth to take a seemingly commanding 7-3 lead. Poolesville scored two runs in the sixth to pull within two runs.

In the seventh, Poolesville had runners on first and third with one out when the batter grounded to shortstop Matt Kaler. Kaler threw to first to get the batter, with the runner on third scoring. The other runner was gunned down when he tried to go from first to third on the play.

Pitchers Brian Gobish and Reid Kellam combined to allow no earned runs as Walt Whitman handily defeated Springbrook 10-3 at home on Monday night. With the win, Whitman's record improved to 4-1 on the season, 2-1 in division.

The Viking pitchers allowed only three hits and struck out seven en route to the victory. Springbrook broke on top with three unearned runs on two errors in the top of the second. But the Vikings rallied for four runs in the bottom of the inning to take the lead for good.

Chris Kelly led Whitman's potent offensive attack, which is producing more than 10 runs per game, with a 3-for-4 performance that included two doubles and an RBI. Brant Hester, Matt Kaler, and Ethan Thompson also drove in two runs apiece.

After falling behind 2-0, the Vikings scored four times in the second inning. Daniel Novak drove in the first run with a single. Ethan Thompson followed with a two-run single.

Two errors and a walk loaded the bases for Whitman in the fourth inning. Brian Gobish walked to force home one run. Then Brant Hester delivered a two-run double to make the score 7-2. Kelly followed with a single to make it 8-2.

Whitman scored two more runs in the fifth inning after Jesse Mates led off a double and Thompson reached on an error.

Not even the cold or the rain could stop the Walt Whitman Vikings as they pounded Einstein 10-1 on Thursday in a game called for bad weather after five innings. Mike Lee picked up the victory for the 4-1 Vikings. Dan Williams pitched three strong innings of relief.

Despite brutal playing conditions, Max Hilbert managed to go a perfect 3-for-3 with three RBIs, two doubles, and two runs scored. Hilbert tied a Whitman record last year by scoring 24 runs.

Coach Joe Cassidy's Vikings took advantage of the poor conditions to steal six bases. Matt Kaler and Ethan Thompson each stole two. Hilbert and Jesse Mates also stole a base.

The Vikings struck for four runs in first, two in the second, and another four in the third inning, before their attention turned to making the game official.

Matt Kaler went two-for-three in the game, with two RBIs, two runs scored, and a walk to go with his stolen base. Thompson reached base each time and scored three runs.

Pundits watched the game closely for proof that poets are smarter and stronger than physicists.

The baseball gods picked a tough day for Whitman and Blake to open their regular season. Sloppy conditions produced 15 combined errors, 21 walks, and a 10-9 extra-inning Blake victory.

Whitman came from behind three times to tie the score, once battling from five runs back, only to lose the game on a miscue in the eighth inning. Brantley Hester drove in three runs for the Vikings and Ethan Thompson recorded three hits.

After Blake scored two times in the first, the Vikings returned the favor with two runs in the bottom of the inning. Ethan Thompson and Max Hilbert both singled. A walk to Matt Kaler loaded the bases. Brian Gobish walked to force in the first run. Chris Kelly hit a groundball to second to bring home the second.

Blake was ahead 5-2 in the bottom of the fourth, when Daniel Novak drove home Kelly, who had doubled earlier in the inning. Whitman scored twice more in the fith inning to tie the score, 5-5. But Blake nearly batted around the order in the sixth inning, scoring five times to make it 10-5.

Whitman wasn't done yet. The Vikings scored five runs in the bottom of the inning on only two hits, sending all nine batters to the plate. Each team scored a loan run in the seventh inning. Matt Kaler doubled and, after two walks, came around to score on a sacrifice fly by Brant Hester.

Two Viking errors in the top of the eighth resulted in a Blake run. Whitman put two runners on in the bottom of the inning but couldn't even the score.

The Walt Whitman Vikings opened the varsity baseball season in spectular fashion trouncing Richard Montgomery and Paint Branch in a doubleheader at Paint Branch.

In the opener, the Vikings defeated RM by a 25-13 score. Whitman beat Paint Branch 20-9 in the second game. Both games ended by slaughter after five innings.

The Vikings, presaging the potency of their regular-season lineup, put on a hitting clinic in these warm-ups, pounding out 44 hits over 10 innings.

In the first game, senior Mike Lee pounded out four hits, including a homerun over the "green monster" in left. Max Hilbert, Jesse Mates, and Brian Gobish also had three hits.

Freshman Henry Kuhn, playing his first varsity game, went two-for-five with two RBI and two runs scored.

Whitman put up a 10 spot in the first inning and never looked back, adding six more runs in the third and the fifth.

The highlights of the second game were a perfect five-for-five performance by Matt Kaler that included a homer, a double, and five RBI, and a 390-foot blast over the right-center field fence by Danny Lee, upstaging the home run hit by his older brother in the first game.

	AVG	GP	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	K	HBP	IBB	SB	CS	SH	SF	DP	ROE	FC	LOB	TB	OBP	SLG
5	James Dionne	.000	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	.000
7	Daniel Fleshner	.250	9	0	8	1	2	0	0	0	1	1	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	2	.333	.250
44	Brian Gobish	.375	20	19	64	15	24	2	1	1	20	8	6	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	18	31	.486	.484
33	Brantley Hester	.340	18	17	47	14	16	3	0	2	17	7	10	6	0	0	0	0	3	0	2	0	13	25	.492	.532
4	Max Hilbert	.452	19	18	62	24	28	5	5	1	23	6	8	5	0	9	1	0	1	1	2	2	10	46	.581	.742
34	Matt Kaler	.451	21	21	71	26	32	8	1	3	25	8	11	7	0	8	3	0	1	0	6	0	20	51	.609	.718
2	Jason Keene	.167	4	1	6	0	1	0	0	0	0	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	2	1	.375	.167
23	Reid Kellam	.333	7	0	3	0	1	0	0	0	1	1	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	.500	.333
14	Chris Kelly	.333	19	17	51	9	17	6	0	0	4	10	6	1	0	1	1	0	1	0	1	2	14	23	.492	.451
6	Henry Kuhn	.333	2	2	9	4	3	0	0	0	2	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	5	3	.500	.333
25	Dan Lee	.480	9	8	25	6	12	1	0	1	6	2	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	2	16	.556	.640
32	Mike Lee	.312	21	21	64	14	20	2	0	1	10	5	8	0	0	1	0	1	1	0	1	2	21	25	.400	.391
1	Sam Littman	.250	3	0	4	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	.250	.250
9	Jesse Mates	.353	20	15	51	11	18	2	1	0	8	1	1	1	0	1	0	3	0	2	4	0	8	22	.453	.431
20	Dan Novak	.322	20	20	59	13	19	1	0	0	11	7	5	3	0	2	0	0	1	2	3	2	12	20	.486	.339
42	Michael Penansky	.000	4	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	.000
10	Ethan Thompson	.348	20	20	69	25	24	2	0	1	13	10	4	0	0	6	2	0	1	0	7	0	9	29	.512	.420
21	Ethan Warshowsky	.000	11	4	7	2	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	3	1	0	0	0	0	1	3	0	.143	.000
8	Jason Weingardt	.500	6	0	4	3	2	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	2	.800	.500
3	Dan Williams	.368	13	6	19	6	7	1	0	0	2	3	5	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	2	3	8	.545	.421
	Total	.364	21	21	624	173	227	33	8	10	144	73	76	25	0	34	9	6	9	7	31	11	141	306	.502	.490

 

Click on column heading to sort by that column

 

 

 

 

 

	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0	0	0	0
7	Daniel Fleshner	5	0	11	1	1	0	0	1.000	0	0	0	0
44	Brian Gobish	19	18	113	93	89	0	4	0.957	0	3	0	11
33	Brantley Hester	12	11	69	37	28	0	9	0.757	0	0	0	0
4	Max Hilbert	19	18	111	25	23	0	2	0.920	0	0	0	0
34	Matt Kaler	21	21	133	66	58	0	8	0.879	0	0	0	0
2	Jason Keene	4	1	11	2	1	0	1	0.500	0	0	0	0
23	Reid Kellam	11	3	26	9	9	0	0	1.000	0	0	0	0
14	Chris Kelly	17	15	97	77	71	1	5	0.935	0	0	0	0
6	Henry Kuhn	2	2	10	3	2	0	1	0.667	0	0	0	0
25	Dan Lee	11	10	66	34	33	0	1	0.971	0	1	2	10
32	Mike Lee	20	20	102	24	18	1	5	0.792	0	0	0	0
1	Sam Littman	2	0	2	0	0	0	0	0.000	0	0	0	0
9	Jesse Mates	17	16	99	42	40	0	2	0.952	0	3	2	10
20	Dan Novak	19	19	114	17	14	1	2	0.882	0	0	0	0
42	Michael Penansky	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0.000	0	0	0	0
10	Ethan Thompson	20	20	117	49	45	0	4	0.918	0	0	0	0
21	Ethan Warshowsky	8	7	36	1	1	0	0	1.000	0	0	0	0
8	Jason Weingardt	3	1	9	3	3	0	0	1.000	0	0	0	0
3	Dan Williams	16	10	56	14	11	0	3	0.786	0	0	0	0
	Total	21	21	1182	497	447	3	47	0.905	0	7	4	31

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

	GP	GS	IP	R	ER	H	BB	HBP	IBB	K	CG	W	L	S	HLD	BS	ERA	PT	B	ST	SB	CS	WP
44	Brian Gobish	9	3	23.0	14	9	17	17	4	1	8	1	2	2	0	0	0	2.74	349	144	205	1	1	0
34	Matt Kaler	5	0	5.1	8	4	9	0	2	0	1	0	1	1	0	0	0	5.25	67	22	45	1	0	0
23	Reid Kellam	11	3	29.0	27	19	28	11	7	0	16	0	2	0	2	0	0	4.59	444	176	268	10	2	2
32	Mike Lee	9	7	25.0	26	14	39	16	2	0	14	0	3	1	0	0	0	3.92	352	139	213	6	0	1
1	Sam Littman	2	0	2.0	9	0	4	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.00	53	31	22	0	0	0
10	Ethan Thompson	8	2	18.0	11	10	20	7	2	0	15	0	2	1	0	0	0	3.89	233	93	140	0	0	0
3	Dan Williams	12	6	36.0	33	22	40	28	0	0	24	1	3	2	0	0	0	4.28	590	233	357	4	0	1
	Total	56	21	138.1	128	78	157	83	17	1	78	2	13	7	2	0	0	3.95	2088	838	1250	22	3	4