The Winona baseball team suffered a post Spring Break letdown, dropping three games after returning from a Spring Break trip to Florida. The Tigers fell to 3-8 with two losses to East Webster, 14-0 and 16-10, and one to Calhoun Academy 4-1.
“In the first East Webster game, we were bad,” said Coach Mark Austin. “In the second game, we started hitting the ball.”
Winona fell behind 14-0 in the second game, then rallied with one run in the fourth, seven in the fifth and two in the sixth, but came up short. Jon Reuben Chesteen led a 13-ht attack for the Tigers with two singles, a double and one RBI. Garrett Ables had a single, double and two RBIs. Cade Eldridge and J.J. Looney each singled twice and drove in a run.
The losses to East Webster left Winona at 0-2 in Region 2-2A.
Errors, two base running, pitching woes and bad luck doomed the Tigers against Calhoun Academy. “We didn't pitch well. We threw too many ball, way too many balls,” Austin said.
As for the bad luck, a two-run homer by Ables was negated because a balk was called before the pitch. “He (the pitcher) was standing on the rubber and licked his hand and didn't wipe it off,” Austin said. “You can't lick your hand when you're on the rubber.”
Winona had four hits, all singles, by Ables, Chesteen, Looney and Taylor Barfield. Ables drove in the team's run.
The Tigers played at Bruce in a 2-2A game Tuesday, and will have a rematch with Bruce Thursday, a home game at 7 p.m.
