Muenster tops Era in playoffs
May 14—A huge crowd filled the stands Friday night at Gainesville High School as two Cooke County teams went head-to-head in a playoff showdown.
The Muenster baseball team defeated Era 10-0 in five innings in the area round thanks to a no-hit performance from its starting pitcher.
Cody Hill threw his second no-hitter of the playoffs. Both have been of the five-inning variety due to the run-rule. The Luna Community College signee struck out eight hitters. Luke Karnes was the only Era hitter to reach base thanks to a second inning walk. Hill ended the game with four-straight strikeouts.
Muenster (23-11) advanced to the regional quarterfinals after a 3-0 start to the postseason. The Hornets have outscored their opposition 35-1.
Era (17-6) had never reached the second round until this season. This loss can't overshadow a historic season for the Hornets in black.
Muenster coach Josh Wheeler said his team played well.
"We're pitching well and playing good defense," Wheeler said. "If you don't give up runs, you can't lose. We've been doing that pretty well."
Hill said it feels great to throw a playoff no-hitter, but it was a team effort.
"Man, we played great," Hill said. "The team really helped out on defense a lot. It was just a great game all-around for us. We really had the bats going good."
Hill went 1-for-1 with a run at the plate. He doubled and was intentionally walked twice.
Brody Tyler led the red Hornets, hitting 3-for-4 with 2 RBIs and 2 runs. His only out came on a line drive caught by an infielder. Lucas Sebade went 0-for-3 with 2 RBIs.
Plenty of fans from both sides filled up the stands in Gainesville, with a few more fans even sitting on a hill behind center field to get a glimpse of the action.
Wheeler said the atmosphere was great.
"Our crowd came to play tonight," Wheeler said. "It's a cool feeling, especially with a lot of people at a baseball game. We get this quite a bit when we play in the third and the fourth round, but to have it in round two is pretty cool."
Muenster took the lead in the second inning. Colton Deckard, fresh off winning a bronze medal at the state track and field meet earlier in the day, was hit by a pitch to lead off. He later scored the first run on an error. Gredan Wolf hit an RBI sacrifice fly to score Devon Bindel later in the inning.
Tyler walked it off in the fifth with a 2-RBI single, scoring Wolf and Grant Ward to end the game.
Era coach Scott Bishop said despite the result, playing in the second round against a strong opponent is a good experience for his players.
"I think these guys, they're a good group," Bishop said. "I think these seniors set a pretty high bar going forward. Proud of the way that they fought. Proud of the team unity. They've done a really good job with that all year. I'm just proud of this team. We've won 17 games for a reason. They've done a lot of good things. Obviously not the way we wanted it to end, but go get 'em, Muenster. Go all the way."
