Reid Gross Pitches Gem in State Semis To Earn County Athlete of Week Honors
Fayette Co. Record’s Athlete of the Week
Recent FCR’s Athlete of the Week
May 7: Briana Vavra, Schulenburg Softball
May 14: Trenton Barnes, La Grange Baseball
May 21: Parker Vitek, Fayetteville Baseball
May 28: Logan Fritsch, Fayetteville Baseball
June 4: Theresa Urbanovksy, LG Grad/Judson Coach
June 11: Reid Gross, Fayetteville Baseball
* Read about the new honorees in our Friday editions.
Fayetteville freshman Reid Gross delivered on the mound and at the plate for the Lions baseball team Wednesday afternoon as they took down Nazareth high school in the state semifinals with a 4-0 victory.
Gross threw a complete game two-hit shutout and also blasted a triple to the right field wall at Dell Diamond for an RBI in the top of the third inning. Handling tall duties on both sides of the ball,
Gross is our choice for this edition’s Fayette County Player of the Week.
Question: What’s it like playing at Dell Diamond?
Answer: “Walking out on the field, probably one of the best feelings I’ve ever had. I was a little nervous, but once you get the feel, throw the first pitch, it all goes away.”
Question: How was your team able to make it this far to state?
Answer: “With heart. We were the underdogs. No one expected us to get this far, but look where we are now, going to the championship game.”
Question: What’s your favorite personal highlight from this season?
Answer: “Probably what just happened right here. Travis (Gully), diving catch. Super big play. One of the best plays I’ve ever seen.”
Question: How would you rank your pitching performance to your hitting performance in the Nazareth game?
Answer: “Pitching was definitely better. The triple was definitely a good one. The two strikeouts I had could be beefed up a little bit, but I’m happy with my pitching performance.”
Question: What are the advantages of being a lefty in the field and at the plate?
Answer: “It’s an advantage being able to pick off to first. Lefties always got the advantage. A disadvantage, though, is a lefty in the box. That’s a no go. Lefty on lefty, no.”
Question: How are you able to handle the pressure of the big stage as a freshman?
Answer: “First pitch, I don’t think about anything but throw in the game. You got to throw until it’s done. It’s not over until it’s over and that’s what we did.”
Gross’ dominating performance in a professional stadium as a freshman is a sign of good things to come for Fayetteville baseball.