Hahnville, Destrehan make the playoffs
When Destrehan and Hahnville suffered back-to-back losses to end the season, both teams’ playoff chances appeared to be in jeopardy. The two teams had been riding high heading into those final two contests, with either one of them just needing a single win to seal up a post-season birth. But that would have been too easy. Instead, both teams lost. Hahnville fell 10-1 and 6-1 to St. Amant, while Destrehan was upended by Dutchtown 7-2 and 6-5.
That knocked both teams into a three-way tie with St. Amant, which meant that the final post-season birth would have to be decided in a playoff. Hahnville won a coin toss that gave them a bye, which set the stage for a nail biter between Destrehan and St. Amant. The Wildcats came out on top 2-1 in the game and moved on to the determining game with Hahnville.
After all was said and done, the Tigers took advantage of a late-game triple to push across two runs, which proved to be the difference in their 5-3 victory.
With Hahnville automatically in, Destrehan had a long two-day wait to find out if they would get one of the state’s at-large bids. The call eventually came and the Wildcats learned they were in on April 28. Hahnville received an 11th seed, while Destrehan is seeded 15th.
After all that, the actual post-season must seem like a cakewalk.
“Extremely crazy,” Hahnville head coach Kade Rogers said of the last week of the regular season. “From flipping a coin to determine who gets a bye for the three team playoff to winning that playoff, it’s just been like a rollercoaster.”
For Rogers though, he appreciates the challenge that the district presented his squad.
“Our district was extremely tough and it prepared us for what we are going to see during the playoffs,” Rogers said. “This whole district season has actually been like a long playoff for us, so our kids should be used to playing in this environment.”
Hahnville and Destrehan will both take the field on May 1, with the Tigers taking on New Iberia and the Wildcats battling Rummel. The games will both begin at 4 p.m. and both teams will host the contests.
Rummel finished the season 19-16-1,and were third in their district with an 8-4 mark. New Iberia was 18-14 on the season, with a 6-3 district record. Rogers says that he doesn’t know much about New Iberia, but the fact that they made the playoffs makes them a formidable opponent.
“We have to show up to play both mentally and physically,” Rogers said. “If we play hard and play Hahnville baseball, the only one who can beat us is ourselves.”
Throughout the playoffs, the team with the lower seed will get to host that round. Each team only gets one chance to prove they belong because the playoffs are single elimination.
The second round games have not been decided yet, but they will have to be played before May 5. Check out www.heraldguide.com after the first round to find out when the next games will be scheduled.
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