2014 Plano East / Plano
Varsity Baseball April 22, 2014
Posted: Tuesday, April 22, 2014
Ethan Grant egrant@starlocalmedia.com Star Local Media Plano Senior clinched
the outright District 10-5A baseball title Tuesday night in a 3-2 win over Plano
East.
Senior Jake Fraze earned the win on the mound for the Wildcats (11-2 in district),
who got an RBI single from junior Cody Farhat in the bottom of the third and a
two-run home run by sophomore Quinn Waterbury in the bottom of the fifth to
jump out to a 3-0 lead.
The Panthers (6-7) chased Fraze in the top of the sixth, but senior Kenneth Tabor
was brought into the game in relief to record a four-out save and officially market
Plano as 10-5A's top baseball squad.
East made things interesting in the top of the seventh, getting a leadoff walk from
senior Austin Palisch. He scored on a two-out double by senior James Rudkin to
cut the lead to 3-2, but the first baseman was stranded there as Tabor recorded
the game's final out.
Sophomore Dylan Easterling took the loss for the Panthers. He surrendered all
three Wildcats runs while giving up six hits, walking one and striking out three.
Fraze had four strikeouts on the evening.
HIGHLIGHTS
It was a pitcher's duel in Plano until Waterbury stepped to the plate in the bottom
of the fifth.
The sophomore stroked a fly ball over the right field fence off Easterling to extend
Plano's lead to 3-0 and give Fraze some cushion he wound up desperately
needing.
East had at least two runners on base in four of the contest's seven innings, and
had a runner in scoring position in five frames. But the bats went cold when those
situations occurred, dooming the Panthers to only two runs.
The best scoring chance came in the top of the sixth, when the bases were loaded
with one out for senior Reece Calvert. He grounded out to third base to score a
run, but pinch hitter Raphael Nunez grounded out facing Tabor to end the threat.
Easterling took the loss, but he kept East in the ballgame and did a nice job of
mixing up pitches against a potent Plano lineup. Head coach Travis Collins has to
be encouraged about his young starter's performance both from a playoff
perspective and when thinking about the future.
For the Wildcats, wrapping up the title on Senior Night was an added bonus to
beating a city rival. With 10 seniors on the squad, there was a lively crowd in
attendance to celebrate their accomplishments with the program.
GAME NOTES
Sophomore Devin Gifford had a nice game for the Panthers, making three solid
putouts in the
field and collecting two hits. He's looking like a stalwart at second base for the
next two seasons, too...Farhat and senior catcher Michael Davis paced the
Wildcats' offense on a night that hits just weren't falling. Davis' double in the fifth
set the stage for Waterbury's blast...Tabor was wild entering the game in the sixth,
likely an indicator of his stature as a starter, not a reliever. He settled down and
worked around a walk and a double in the seventh to pick up the save, recording
two strikeouts in the process...East will need a win on Friday to avoid a two-way
tie for fourth with Plano West, which beat McKinney Tuesday night. The Wolves
can tie the Panthers in the standings with a win and an East loss.
For continued coverage of the local sports scene, follow @DowntownEG on
Twitter. Posted: Tuesday, April 22, 2014 11:18 pm | Updated: 9:35 am, Wed Apr
23, 2014.
Plano Senior clinches 10-5A baseball title: Fraze, Tabor combine to limit East with
RISP Ethan Grant egrant@starlocalmedia.com Star Local Media | 0 comments
Plano Senior clinched the outright District 10-5A baseball title Tuesday night in a
3-2 win over Plano East.
Senior Jake Fraze earned the win on the mound for the Wildcats (11-2 in district),
who got an RBI single from junior Cody Farhat in the bottom of the third and a
two-run home run by sophomore Quinn Waterbury in the bottom of the fifth to
jump out to a 3-0 lead.
The Panthers (6-7) chased Fraze in the top of the sixth, but senior Kenneth Tabor
was brought into the game in relief to record a four-out save and officially market
Plano as 10-5A's top baseball squad.
East made things interesting in the top of the seventh, getting a leadoff walk from
senior Austin Palisch. He scored on a two-out double by senior James Rudkin to
cut the lead to 3-2, but the first baseman was stranded there as Tabor recorded
the game's final out.
Sophomore Dylan Easterling took the loss for the Panthers. He surrendered all
three Wildcats runs while giving up six hits, walking one and striking out three.
Fraze had four strikeouts on the evening.
HIGHLIGHTS
It was a pitcher's duel in Plano until Waterbury stepped to the plate in the bottom
of the fifth.
The sophomore stroked a fly ball over the right field fence off Easterling to extend
Plano's lead to 3-0 and give Fraze some cushion he wound up desperately
needing.
East had at least two runners on base in four of the contest's seven innings, and
had a runner in scoring position in five frames. But the bats went cold when those
situations occurred, dooming the Panthers to only two runs.
The best scoring chance came in the top of the sixth, when the bases were loaded
with one out for senior Reece Calvert. He grounded out to third base to score a
run, but pinch hitter Raphael Nunez grounded out facing Tabor to end the threat.
Easterling took the loss, but he kept East in the ballgame and did a nice job of
mixing up pitches against a potent Plano lineup. Head coach Travis Collins has to
be encouraged about his young starter's performance both from a playoff
perspective and when thinking about the future.
For the Wildcats, wrapping up the title on Senior Night was an added bonus to
beating a city rival. With 10 seniors on the squad, there was a lively crowd in
attendance to celebrate their accomplishments with the program.
GAME NOTES
Sophomore Devin Gifford had a nice game for the Panthers, making three solid
putouts in the field and collecting two hits. He's looking like a stalwart at second
base for the next two seasons, too...Farhat and senior catcher Michael Davis
paced the Wildcats' offense on a night that hits just weren't falling. Davis' double in
the fifth set the stage for Waterbury's blast...Tabor was wild entering the game in
the sixth, likely an indicator of his stature as a starter, not a reliever. He settled
down and worked around a walk and a double in the seventh to pick up the save,
recording two strikeouts in the process...East will need a win on Friday to avoid a
two-way tie for fourth with Plano West, which beat McKinney Tuesday night. The
Wolves can tie the Panthers in the standings with a win and an East loss.