Owen McIntyre
HOPE — For three innings Wednesday, Hauser hit several balls hard, but had no runs and no hits to show for it.
But after trailing Southwestern (Shelby) 1-0 going to the fourth, the Jets plated two runs in the bottom of the inning, then erupted for eight runs in the fifth. They added the final tally in the sixth to finish off an 11-1, six-inning win to remain unbeaten in the Mid-Hoosier Conference.
“I thought our plate appearances were pretty good,” Hauser coach Nate Long said. “Early on, we were just hitting the ball right at them. Southwestern always plays us very well. They’re well-coached, so we knew coming in that it was going to be a good game.”
Senior Owen McIntyre threw a four-hitter for the Jets (9-5-1, 7-0). After allowing one run on three hits in the first, he shut out the Spartans and allowed only one hit over the final five innings.
“I think I settled down,” McIntyre said. “I don’t really know what it was. I think we all started out slow, and then we all picked each other up and started going. We just kept our heads high and knew (the hits) were going to fall eventually.”
McIntyre, who also went 2 for 2 at the plate, finished with nine strikeouts.
“Owen does a good job,” Long said. “He’s a senior that’s proven himself, and that’s why he gets the ball in conference games. When he has two pitches working, he can mix it in there pretty good, and keep people off-balance.”
Hauser got on the board in the fourth on a game-tying RBI-single from Kameron Blair and an RBI-squeeze bunt from Karson Stuckey that gave the Jets the lead for good.
“It helped me a lot once we got those runs,” McIntyre said. “I was way more relaxed on the mound. I thought I was throwing more strikes.”
The floodgates opened in the fifth. With one out, Hauser pounded out five consecutive hits, including back-to-back RBI-doubles by Simeon Wasil and Holden Pittman. McIntyre helped himself with an RBI-single, and another run scored on a bases-loaded walk to R.J. Foster. Zayne McCanlis added an RBI-single on his second hit in the inning.
The Jets ended the game with three straight one-out singles in the sixth, the last coming on an RBI from Blair.
McCanlis, Nathan Worland and Blair all went 2 for 3 for Hauser, which finished with 10 hits.
“I like our energy,” Long said. “Our young kids are growing up, and that always helps this time of year. We have a good group of kids. They’re great baseball players, and they want to be out here, and they hustle and that’s what I really like.”
