Tigers clinch District Championship on Senior night. Noah Heard and Patrick Vienne were recognized pre-game as the two seniors on the 2021 baseball team. They have played ball together for 12 years, were joined by family before the game and their fathers, Mike Vienne and Ken Heard, threw out the first pitch. Noah started on the mound for the Tigers against the Block Bears.
The lead off hitter for Block reached on a throwing error by Ethan Busby at SS but that would be all that was given up in the inning. In the bottom of the frame, Payne Williams starts things off for St. Mary’s with a double to deep RF. Williams steals third and is 60 feet away from home plate and scores on a single by Heard. With no outs, Vienne reaches base after being hit by a pitch. It was the beginning of a six run first inning for Saint Mary’s.
Heard issued a base on balls to start the second inning and Block stranded two runners on the base path. Saint Mary’s adds a run in the bottom of the inning and has the offensive engine hitting all cylinders. In the top of the third, Block loads the bases before Heard settles and sits down the Bears on strikes. Three on and no runs for the visiting Bears in the inning.
In the bottom of the third, Busby doubles to start things off. Williams keeps the inning going with a base on balls and is driven in on a triple to left field by the Heard. A pitch in the dirt to the backstop puts Heard across home plate. Ben Bienvenu flies out to end the inning but not before the Tigers add three runs and lead 10-0. Nathan Slaughter takes the mound in relief of Heard and retires the side in order. Saint Mary’s adds another run in the bottom of the fourth and just needs three outs to secure another District title.
They get the win, again by the 10 run rule in another abbreviated game. Heard, Bienvenu and Martinez each had a pair of RBIs in the game. Saint Mary’s sits in the number four spot in Division IV rankings in advance of the playoff announcements.
The Tigers added two more W’s to the total by beating Bolton 11-1 Wednesday and Franklin 3-2 Thursday. Two more victories against 4-A teams should help the team’s power rankings. Only two more games are on the schedule for the Tigers before the postseason.
