Henderson International gets boost in confidence

With eight sophomores in its starting lineup, Henderson International’s baseball team always is looking to build confidence.

A regular-season sweep of defending Class 1A state champion Lake Mead should go a long way to that end.

The Wolverines scored three runs in the first inning Thursday on the way to a 7-2 home victory over Lake Mead in the 1A Southern League.

“It’s huge for confidence,” Wolverines pitcher Logan Christie said. “A couple of us haven’t been doing great hitting, but to come out and do this today, it gives us so much confidence going into upcoming games.”

Henderson International (11-8, 2-2) opened the season with a 6-2 win over Lake Mead in March and then won the first league meeting 16-8 on Tuesday.

It’s a reversal of last season, when the Eagles swept three games against the Wolverines by a combined score of 36-12. Lake Mead (9-5-1, 2-2) returned six starters from last season, when it won the first state title in program history.

“We’ve made a lot of strides in a short period of time,” Henderson International coach Mike Ostrowski said. “We’re starting eight sophomores and a freshman, and sometimes with sophomores and freshmen, if they get on a roll, they can surprise some people.”

Christie (4-2) threw 5 1/3 solid innings to earn the win. The sophomore right-hander allowed one earned run on four hits with five strikeouts and no walks and was 2-for-3 with an RBI.

He was relieved by Boomer Sherrill, who struck out five of the six batters he faced to close the game.

Keenan Gladd-Brown went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs for the Wolverines, and teammate Chase Curi was 2-for-3. Devin Serrano belted a solo home run in the second inning for Lake Mead.

Ostrowski is pleased with how his team has responded to news in late February that Henderson International would be closing its high school campus at the end of the school year, thus ending its athletic programs.

Though an effort has begun to keep the school open, Ostrowski said the Wolverines are “under the assumption” that the school’s closure will go on as planned.

“These kids have nothing to lose,” he said. “We’re in a tough spot with the school situation, and this is their release. They get here, and they can walk across those lines, and for the next two hours they’re focused on the task at hand. That’s what I’m most proud of.”