Ballard baseball uses big fifth inning to top Eastern for 28th District championship
Even without a senior in his starting lineup, Ballard High School baseball coach David Trager had high expectations for his 2024 squad.
He saw glimpses of the talent and chemistry during practice last fall.
“These guys want to be around each other,” Trager said. “In high school, that goes so far. They have to want to show up at the ballpark this time of year … and they do.”
The Bruins continued to roll Tuesday night, scoring six runs in the fifth inning on their way to a 9-4 victory over Eastern in the 28th District Tournament final at Christian Academy.
The Bruins (27-5) are ranked No. 4 in the state by Prep Baseball Report and will take a seven-game winning streak into next week’s Seventh Region Tournament. They’re seeking their first regional title since 2015.
“At first, we didn’t think we were going to be this good,” said shortstop Kevin Moore, one of seven juniors in a starting lineup that also includes two sophomores and one freshman. “We have a chemistry because we’ve been playing together so long, and we just had to find it.”
Moore led the way Tuesday, going 3 for 3 with a double, a triple and four RBIs. His three-run triple in the fifth gave Ballard an 8-4 lead.
Trager said Moore is at his best in the biggest games.
“He wants to be the guy,” Trager said. “He probably has the highest baseball IQ of any of us, and he competes in the box very well. He plays the game at such a good pace.”
Junior Kaine Samuels went 2 for 3 with two RBIs for Ballard. The 6-foot-7 240-pounder also started on the mound but gave up two runs in the first inning and moved to first base in the second inning.
“Kaine sweats a whole, whole lot, and he gets out there and has trouble gripping the ball,” Trager said. “We had a towel out there, a rosin bag, and he just couldn’t grip the ball.”
Fellow junior Lucas Niemeyer (9-0) was stellar in relief after giving up a two-run home run to Eastern’s Brayden Nettles — the first of his career — in the second inning.
Niemeyer struck out seven in six innings.
Trager said he was proud of Niemeyer and the rest of the team for bouncing back from 2-0 and 4-2 deficits.
“I said, ‘If you guys aren’t tough enough to rebound from this, your season is going to be over pretty quick next week,’” Trager said. “And they responded.”
No. 14 Eastern (24-10) managed one hit after the third inning and committed five errors.
“Our kryptonite all year has been defense and mental mistakes,” coach T.J. Graves said. “It comes down to me. We’re not prepared to be in the right position, and we’re making the same mistakes over and over again. … You can’t commit five errors against Ballard.”
The draw for the Seventh Region Tournament is set for Friday morning. Ballard will host a quarterfinal Monday, and Eastern will play on the road.
Graves, whose Eagles won the Seventh Region title last year, expects his team to battle next week.
“We have to lick our wounds and be the toughest second seed known to mankind,” he said. “I think we can do it, but we have to clean up our mental mistakes.”
EASTERN 220 000 0 - 4 8 5
BALLARD 200 160 x - 9 9 1
WP – Lucas Niemeyer (9-0). LP – Landon Waugh (6-3).
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Jason Frakes: 502-582-4046; jfrakes@courier-journal.com; Follow on X @kyhighs.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: KHSAA baseball: Ballard defeats Eastern for 28th District title
