Rusk Ends Leps’ Baseball Season

The La Grange baseball team saw its season come to an end against Rusk Friday in Navasota in the second round of the 4A playoffs.

Rusk won the best-of-three series opener Thursday 7-0 and then edged the Leps 2-1 Friday.

In Thursday’s game Rusk star left-handed hurler JD Thompson (who is just a junior but has already verbally committed to accept a scholarship to play for college baseball power Vanderbilt), struck out 12 and took a no-hitter into the fifth inning.

“He was really good. We made him a little better by not following our game plan,” said La Grange manager Robert Barber of Thompson after Thursday’s game. “Our kids were taking swings we shouldn’t be taking against that guy ... Two mistakes were key to their seven runs.”

La Grange catcher Kadyn Hall broke up the no-hit bid with a single to center in the fifth inning. The only other hit the Leps got that night was an infield single by Brendan Maddox.

“It was a great moment to compete against a guy like that,” Hall said after Thursday’s game. “He got the better of us today, but we’ll try to get ‘em tomorrow.”

Friday was a much different game. La Grange senior Wyatt Wick threw a complete game with 11 strikeouts.

But he was matched by Rusk lefty Mason Cirkel, who also threw a complete game with 11 strikeouts.

La Grange’s lone run was scored by Kaleb Pyle, who was driven in by Maddox. The Leps had a potential game-tying run throw out at home in the sixth inning.

Four La Grange seniors played their final game Friday: Wick, Pyle, Braeden Wilder and Colby Spann.

Rusk (24-7) now advances to play China Spring (27-4) in the next round.