MASON, W.Va. — Class A defending state champion Wahama defeated Gilmer County 7-0 on Wednesday night to capture its second straight Region 4 high school baseball title.
The White Falcons (20-10) took control of the game in the first, scoring four quick runs to give senior starting pitcher Mason Hicks more than enough cushion to work with on the mound.
“In the first inning, (Hicks) was on and throwing strikes. I didn’t think they would be able to catch up after we scored those four runs,” said Wahama coach Tom Cullen. “Not too many teams in Class A have a No. 2 pitcher as good as he is.”
Hicks, who collected 14 strikeouts in the two-hit, seven-inning shutout, improved to 7-3 with the win and lowered his ERA to 1.81 on the season. Wahama junior ace Philip Hoffman (8-3, 0.50 ERA) threw another complete game shutout for the White Falcons in Monday’s 2-0 regional semifinal win over Charleston Catholic.
“We started out hot today and manufactured some runs,” Cullen said. “Mason (Hicks) was on and it was nice to have had Phil (Hoffman) on Monday. To win, we have to have those two pitching their best.”
Both Hoffman and Hicks picked up state tournament wins a season ago as the White Falcons won their third state title.
“Last year we didn’t have anything to prove, we were just going as far as we could and that would be it,” Hicks said. “There is some added pressure this year being defending champs, but when you can get out there and shutout two solid teams in a row, that just adds to your confidence.
“We’re right where we were last year with the same rotation – if it’s not broken, don’t fix it,” Hicks said. “Our main goal since game one has been to repeat (as state champion), so this win doesn’t really mean anything in the grand scheme. It’s step five of seven for us.”
Gilmer County (18-17) entered Wednesday’s game after knocking off 20-win Williamstown in Monday’s regional semifinal.
In next Friday’s state tournament semifinal (approximately 12:30 p.m. or 1:00 p.m. on June 3), Wahama will face the winner of this Thursday’s regional final matchup between Greater Beckley Christian and Man.
“I couldn’t care less who we play, it doesn’t matter,” Hicks said. “We’re confident in ourselves, we have our own game and we play our own game. We’re confident we can beat anyone we play and that’s the plan.”
It’s Wahama’s seventh regional title overall, but the first time making back-to-back state tournament appearances.
“I’ve told them all year long that getting back there is really, really hard,” Cullen said. “We’ve had good teams try it, but, whether it was the pressure or what, we couldn’t make it back. This team has been determined all along that they were going to make school history.”