Holden Pittman
HOPE — In its previous two outings, Hauser had a little trouble getting the bats going, yet found a way to come up with victories.
Monday evening, there was no such drama. The Class A No. 7 Jets dominated from start to finish in a 17-0, five-inning baseball win against Morristown on senior night.
“I feel a little bit better after today,” Hauser coach Mike Flack said. “I thought the last couple weeks, our hitting was a little sluggish. We were winning, but we were winning late in games and really battling. We really tested ourselves winning late in games, but it’s always nice to try to get a game in like today to get some confidence for some guys.”
The victory clinched the outright Mid-Hoosier Conference title for the Jets (13-3, 10-0). It’s the eighth consecutive MHC title for Hauser, which shared the crown in 2021 and 2023.
“I’m pretty happy,” senior Holden Pittman said. “We don’t have to share it this year. We get to keep it to ourselves.”
Pittman and junior RJ Foster combined on a one-hit shutout. Pittman allowed one hit over three innings before walking the first three batters in the fourth. Foster came on to record three consecutive outs, then retired the Yellow Jackets (6-13, 3-7) in the fifth.
“I think we played hard,” Pittman said. “Our bats were on tonight. We fought to the end, and the end was well deserved.”
Hauser got on the board with four runs in the first. The Jets added one in the second and four in the third, then put up eight runs in the fourth.
Kam Blair went 2 for 3 with a double, a triple and two RBIs. Simeon Wasil and Pittman each finished with two RBIs.
“It’s hard to get anything going on senior night because sometimes the focus gets a little lost,” Flack said. “But I thought the guys locked in and did well.”
Hauser will visit Morristown Tuesday, then closes its MHC schedule with a makeup game Thursday at home against South Decatur. The Jets finish the regular season Saturday at Brown County and will open sectional play May 28 against Oldenburg Academy at Jac-Cen-Del.
“That’s our No. 1 goal first and foremost, is to compete and try to win a MHC championship,” Flack said. “Then, second is compete and try to win a sectional championship. We got Goal 1 tonight.”
