District 6-6A was among, if not the toughest baseball district in DFW during 2023. Heading into the final week of the regular season, the Hebron Hawks trailed the Flower Mound Jaguars by one game in the district standings. All Flower Mound needed was one win against the Hawks to claim the district crown.
After two tight battles on the diamond, the Hawks were able to complete the two game sweep, winning 2-1 and 1-0 to steal the title from right out under the Jaguars’ noses.
The first game took place in Flower Mound on Tuesday night and saw much weather activity throughout the night. Though the game was never delayed, short periods of moderate rain dampened the dirt field.
The Jaguars took the early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first when Josh Glaser singled home Tell Moter who was pinch running for Zane Becker. With Will Patterson on the mound for Hebron, and Zack James for Flower Mound, neither team scored another run throughout the game despite several scoring chances for each team.
Going into the seventh inning, Hebron was down to its last three outs. MJ Seo led off the Hebron half of the inning with a single to left field and Chase Harris came in to pinch run.
After two quick outs, the Hawks suddenly found themselves to one last out. Then, Ian McCracken came in as a pinch hitter and ripped a double into the gap in left field that scored Harris to tie the game.
McCracken took off running on the next pitch and Brady Richardson dropped a blooper into dead center field that allowed McCracken to score and take the 2-1 lead. Despite allowing a baserunner, Hebron closed the game out to set up one final game for the district crown at home.
On Friday night at Hebron, as another set of showers rolled into the metroplex, the stands at Hebron filled to capacity for what would prove to be an even more defensive battle than the first game.
Sophomore Marcos Paz took the hill for the Hawks and went right to work, only allowing two hits and striking out 13 through 6 2/3 innings. The only run of the game came in the first inning on an error by Flower Mound that allowed Lane Haworth to score.
In almost the exact same situation as the game prior, Flower Mound was down to its last out with a runner on second when Paz hit his 110-pitch count and was pulled from the game. Tyler Dobbs took the rubber to try to finish it off, and got the district clinching out on a popup to second, making Hebron the 6-6A district champion.
The Hawks (26-7, 12-2) will open the playoffs with the Prosper Eagles with series details to be determined, while Flower Mound (25-8-2, 11-3) will face the Little Elm Lobos.
