The FW Rebels wore their pink jerseys with pride this week and battled through three highly contested ball games that resulted in a 4-3 win, and 5-3 & 5-4 losses.  Great baseball was played all weekend and where the Rebels really shined this weekend was on the pitcher's mound.  Outstanding performances from Wyatt Baccus, Brady Franz, Devin Hood, Jace Franke, and Evan Smith kept the Rebels in all three games against outstanding competition.  Wins and losses were secondary this weekend though.  The Rebels had names of loved ones on the back of their pink jerseys that fought a much tougher opponent than the Warriors or Trophy Club Bobcats.  Each of those names, whether still with us or not.....I'm sure were proud to see their loved one on the field, giving all they got....until the end of the tournament. 

Here are the Recaps:

GAME 1

FW REBELS 4

TCR BOBCATS WHITE 3

Easily the best pitching the Rebels have faced this fall was in this game.  Both Bobcat pitchers had excellent fast balls and off speed pitches that kept the Rebels off balance.  Still, the Rebels had some arms of their own on display. Wyatt Baccus started on the mound for the Rebels and breezed through 2 innings on only 28 pitches.  Baccus did not allow a hit and struck out 3.  The score was 0-0 heading to the bottom of the 2nd and Brady Franz led off with a hard hit double down the left field line.  With 2 outs, Charlie Rusk reached on an infield single and Franz was able to score on an error when the shortstop threw it away.  In the 3rd inning, Devin Hood came in to pitch and he too went 2 innings without allowing a hit while striking out 5. The Rebels extended their lead to 3-0 in the 3rd inning as Jace Franke walked, Evan Smith & Wyatt Baccus singled, Quentin Enos had an RBI ground out, and Devin Hood had an RBI single.  The score stayed that way until the 5th when Bobcats White were able to tie the game with 3 runs on 4 hits including 2 doubles.  This set the stage for the dramatic bottom of the 5th which would be the final inning.  With one out, Evan Smith singled sharply up the middle.  Smith then stole 2nd and went to 3rd on a Wyatt Baccus ground out.  Quentin Enos then singled up the middle with two outs to score Smith and the Rebels celebration was on with a thrilling 4-3 victory.

GAME 2

TCR BOBCATS HENNIG 5

FW REBELS 3

The pitching the Rebels faced in this game, was the opposite of what they saw in the first game.  Bobcats Hennig threw multiple soft tossers who tossed a lot of strikes and kept the Rebels off balance.  Hennig scored 3 in the top half of the 1st inning but the Rebels answered with 2 in the bottom half.  Evan Smith walked with one out and then stole 2nd and 3rd.  Quentin Enos also walked with 2 outs and promptly stole 2nd as well.  Devin Hood was the next hitter and he crushed a bullet over the center fielder's head for a 2-run double.  Brady Franz was brought into relieve Evan Smith and he struck out 3 of the first 5 hitters he faced.  With the score still 3-2 in the top of the 3rd, Bobcats Hennig took advantage of a Rebels error and scored 2 runs in 3 hits a walk and the error.  Jace Franke got out of a bases loaded jam for the Rebels by striking out the final batter of the inning looking with the bases loaded.  The slow paced game only went 4 innings so the Rebels came to bat in the bottom of the 4th down 5-2.  Evan Smith led off with a single and stole 2nd.  Smith moved to 3rd on a ground out by Wyatt Baccus and then Quentin Enos his a deep sacrifice fly to right to make it 5-3.  Devin Hood then singled to center but was retired at 2nd on a ground out to end the game 5-3.

GAME 3

WARRIORS 5

FW REBELS 4

With the 1-1 pool play mark, the Rebels earned the #10 seed out of the 22 teams that entered the tournament.  This placed them in an odd 4-team bracket and their opponent ended up being the Warriors out of the Allen, Tx area who they had beaten in a pool play game 9-6 the previous week.  The Rebels got the Warriors ace and they accepted the challenge in what was a terrific ballgame.  Wyatt Baccus started on the hill and pitched around a double and a walk to not allow any runs in the 1st.  Baccus then had to be removed from the game due to elbow tenderness. The Rebels got on the board for 3 runs in the 2nd inning.  Devin Hood & Brady Franz singled to center with 1 out.  Then, Charlie Rusk reached on Catcher's Interference to fill the bases.  Coleman Peck knocked in the first 2 Rebel runs with a clutch single to right.  Cade Crow drove in Rusk with a single to right to make it 3-0.  Brady Franz was called in to relieve Baccus and quickly put up two shutout innings.  The score remained 3-0 to begin the bottom of the 4th.  With Franz still on the hill, the Rebels defense let him down.  The Warriors scored 4 runs on just 2 hits.  There were 4 Rebel errors in the inning.  Devin Hood relieved Franz with the bases loaded and 2 outs and struck out the batter to keep the score Warriors 4 Rebels 3.  The Rebels didn't threaten in the 5th inning and Hood struck out all three Warrior hitters in the bottom of the 5th.  This led to the 6th inning.  with one out, Christopher Calabrese was hit by a pitch.  Jace Franke followed with a missile line-drive to center sending Calabrese to 2nd. This brought Evan Smith to the plate and the Warriors starter, who was still in the game through a wild pitch enabling Calabrese & Franke to move up.  Warriors management decided to walk Smith intentionally to fill the bases.  This set the stage for Wyatt Baccus who crushed a deep fly to left center field that looked like it might be caught, but landed safely to tie the game and score Calabrese but all runners advanced just one base.  The Rebels couldn't score any more and went to the bottom of the 6th 4-4.  Devin Hood incredibly struck out the first 2 Warrior hitters in the 6th for 6 consecutive K's since entering the game.  But give the Warriors credit, with 2 outs, the 2-hole hitter blasted a double deep to right and the following hitter laced a single to center to win the game.

So a great weekend of Rebels baseball with a disappointing finish that went right down to the end.  Something for the team to build on as they move forward.  But, again...this weekend had a larger purpose..and for the FW Rebels it was about honoring these loved ones and all those that have battled cancer.

Wyatt Baccus - Suzanne

Quentin Enos - Dad

Evan Smith - Cindy

Jace Franke - Billy

Evan Swindell - Aunt Wendy & Ellie Eby

Brady Franz - Aunt Samantha

Charlie Rusk - Papa

Cade Crow - Mimi

Coleman Peck - P-Note

Devin Hood - Judy Blair

Christopher Calabrese - Paige