Yellow Jackets improve to 13-0 in conference

By James A. McCray III
Prince George's County, Content Manager

The Gwynn Park Yellow Jackets baseball team were down 6-0 to the hosting --yet designated away team-- Frederick Douglass Eagles entering the bottom half of the second inning.

However, the Yellow Jackets showed why there were undefeated in 3A/2A/1A league play and scored 14 second-inning runs en route to a 17-7 victory in six innings.

Gwynn Park and head coach Matt Cooke now are two wins away from clinching the regular-season league title.

"We just had to come back and scratch and fight for one run at a time," Cooke said. " ... We came back, we stuck in there and came away with a win."

On his team's batting efforts, Cooke added: "We had a couple of good hits. ... We did a good job at swinging the strike zone and when we did hit, we hit well."

Brandon Proctor had a game-high 4 RBIs in the victory to lead the Yellow Jackets.

Teammates Hanani Felton and Troy Tolson added 3 RBIs each, respectively, in the victory.

"I just wanted to hit the ball hard, drive in runs, and help the team get a win," Proctor said. "And, I guess that's what I did."

Gwynn Park improved to 13-0 in league play and the magic number to clinch the regular season title now stands at two wins.

Frederick Douglass head coach William Neal was pleased with the team's efforts on the day despite the loss.

"I like playing Gwynn Park because it gives us an opportunity to see some higher-caliber talent," Neal said. "But, if you look at the box score, we kind of controlled the game except for that second inning. ... I kind of knew this season would be a rebuilding season, but I am pretty happy with the way the guys are coming along."

"Today, I think they did a very good job. We had a couple of one-two-three innings and that is very tough to do against a team as talented as [Gwynn Park] is. And, our bats are starting work for us."

E-mail: James A. McCray III