Photo credit: Stephen Bender

After winning a conference championship during the regular season, Hillcrest Academy baseball added to their accolades Saturday night, as they took down Regina Catholic for the District 10 Championship.

It wasn’t an easy path for the Ravens, who found themselves down 3-0 before even grabbing a bat. A two-run home run for Danny Gavin, followed by an RBI single from Colin Baker in the first gave the Regals an early lead.

After being shut-out in the opening frame, Hillcrest responded in the second thanks to three consecutive errors from the Regina Catholic defense. All three would result in a run, as RBI’s from Josiah Beachy, Liam Schrock, and Seth Ours gave the Ravens a lead they would never let up. Hillcrest tacked on four more in the fourth inning, with doubles from Luke Schrock, Rowan Miller, and Grant Bender. Six Ravens drove in at least one run Saturday night, while seven different base-runnners crossed the plate.

Meanwhile, Luke Schrock hit his stride on the mound for Hillcrest Academy. After surrendering four runs on six hits through the first two frames, he allowed just two hits in his final four and a third innings of work. Schrock struck out seven Regals in the win, as Regina Catholic stranded 10 runners, including three instances where they left the bases loaded. Coach Danny Hershberger called on Jace Rempel in the seventh to close the door. Rempel, who had just two previous appearances on the mound entering the night, sent down the two hitters he faced to seal the victory for the Ravens.

With a trip to State now on the line, Hillcrest Academy faces a rematch with the Burlington Notre Dame Nikes in the Substate round Tuesday night.