HOPE — Hauser starting pitcher Jackson Paradise had trouble finding his groove in the first inning against visiting Austin Saturday morning.
After walking the first batter, he gave up two singles and a double, spotting the Eagles an early 2-0 lead before the Jets had their first at bat.
However, there was no panic from Paradise or his teammates. The Class A No. 4 Jets righted the ship and came away with an 8-5 victory.
“I felt pretty good overall,” Paradise said. “I had some trouble finding my groove in the first inning. I was trying to overthrow everything. But I was able to settle down.”
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Paradise settled down enough to throw a complete game, allowing four earned runs on 12 hits, striking out seven to earn the victory.
Offensively, Hauser (14-4) was able to chip away at the early deficit. The Jets scored single runs in each of the first two innings to tie the game. An RBI-single by Will Trotter plated the first run, and an Aaron Mee RBI-hit tied the game.
After holding the Eagles (11-10) scoreless in their half of the third, Hauser, taking advantage of some shaky Austin defense, plated three runs without a hit. Trotter was hit by a pitch and promptly stole second. Kobe Meahl laid down a bunt, and the throw to first ended up in right field, allowing Trotter to score.
Kameron Lawson also laid down a bunt, with the same result, but this time, it was the Austin pitcher who threw the ball into right field, allowing Meahl to score the second run of the inning. After advancing to third, Lawson scored the third run of the inning on a sacrifice fly by Jacob Luken, putting the Jets ahead 5-2.
The Eagles cut the lead to 5-3 by adding an unearned run in the top of the fifth, but Hauser was able to answer back in its half of the sixth with three runs to extend the lead to 8-3. After a walk to Parker Eickbush and an error allowing Mee to reach, Sean Miller singled to score both runners.
Although Austin rallied for two runs in the top of the seventh, it was not enough, and the Jets had earned the victory.
The Eagles committed six errors, allowing Hauser to take full advantage.
“We want to be aggressive. We want to make them throw the ball,” Hauser coach Nate Long said. “We always come in with a game plan to play aggressively.”
Long also was pleased with his team’s overall at bats.
“I think we came ready to go this morning,” he said. “We were ready to swing at the pitches in our particular zone, so I was happy with all aspects of our play offensively.”
