The Whiteoak Wildcats took to the road on Friday evening with perfection just one game away and wasted no time making it a reality, defeating the Peebles Indians 12-0 in five innings.
The Wildcats pitcher Traeton Hamilton lead off the game with a single and showed off his speed by stealing second and taking advantage of an errant throw to advance to third. Two-hole hitter Chase Carraher followed with an RBI infield single to stake the Wildcats to an early 1-0 lead.
Hamilton took to the mound in the bottom of the second and after an error, struck out the next three batters he faced.
The Wildcats found their rhythm in the top half of the third by plating five runs. The inning began much like the first with a base hit by Hamilton followed by an RBI single by Carraher. Only this time, the Wildcats were able to continue the inning and carve out a sizable lead. Caleb West followed with a base on balls and was plated on a two-RBI single by Evan Brill. The Wildcats plated two more runs in the frame on groundouts by Casey Nace and Ryan Roberts to carve out a 6-0 lead.
Hamilton set down the side in order in the bottom half to bring the Wildcats back to the plate looking to stretch their lead even further. After a leadoff single by Carraher, Brill added another RBI to his count via single. After Mason Lehr was hit by a pitch, Trever Yeager stepped to the plate and added an RBI single of his own to stake the Wildcats to an 8-0 lead.
Hamilton found a little trouble in the bottom of the fourth by walking the first two batters he faced. Unfazed, he proceeded to set down the next two batters he faced on strikes and got a flyout to escape the jam.
The Wildcats added four more runs to their total in the top of the fifth to pad their lead. Hamilton reached base again via base on balls and proceeded to swipe two more bases and scored on an RBI fielder’s choice by Carraher. West was able to plate Carraher on an error by the shortstop to give the Wildcats all they would need to enforce the ten-run rule. To be safe, the Wildcats added two more in the inning behind RBI singles from Brill and Nace as well as a single by Chase Bultler to apply more pressure.
Hamilton’s no-hit bid came to an end in the fifth by allowing a single. The base hit was inconsequential, however, and set down the final batter to earn the victory.
With the second undefeated SHAC season in Whiteoak head coach Chris Veidt’s storied career, he said “Honestly, it feels just as good the second time.” He went on to say, “I’m so happy for these guys. They’ll have this for the rest of their lives, it’s not about me it’s about them.”
Hamilton spun a gem on the mound going all five innings, allowing just one hit, no earned runs and seven strikeouts. Evan Brill led the way at the plate, collecting four RBI’s on three hits.
The Wildcats finish off the regular season tomorrow with a non-conference double-header against Piketon. The Wildcats also enter the tournament as the number-one seed in the Southeast District and will face the winner of Sciotoville vs. Peebles on Tuesday.
Spencer Michael is a stringer for The Times-Gazette.
