The baseball season for Wayla
nd High School came to a conclusion Tuesday in an 11-3 loss to Hastings in a Division 2 pre-district contest.
The Saxons, with the win, advance to Lakewood High School for the district tournament and will face Hamilton.
Taking the loss on the mound for the Wildcats was senior Keaton McNees, who pitched the first three innings, allowing six runs (two earned) on five hits while striking out one. He was relieved in the fourth by junior Carter Morse, who pitched two innings, allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits while striking out two. Senior Chris Kincaid pitched the final two innings, allowing three runs (one earned) on two hits while striking out 2.
The Wildcat defense committed seven errors, leading to a couple of big innings for the Saxons, including six in the fourth.
Leading the offensive attack were freshman Jared Rankin, sophomore Ben Barnes, senior Mitch Dykstra, junior Travis Cutler, junior Kayd Hulst, and junior Camden Ritz. Rankin was 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs. Barnes was 2-for-3 with a double, a walk, and a run scored. Dykstra was 1-for-2 with a run scored, two stolen bases, and two walks. Cutler was 1-for-3 with a run scored. Hulst was 1-for-3, and Ritz also was 1-for-3 with an RBI.
The Wildcats ended the campaign with a 14-25 overall record.