HAWKS' LATE SURGE PROVES NOT ENOUGH TO OVERCOME COUGARS

Hawks Baseball was on a roll coming into Mother's Day as they had just won two straight games over Garrett College and Allegany College of Maryland. They had put themselves in a strong position to win the Western Final of the NJCAA Region 20 Conference with no losses in the double elimination tournament. Meanwhile #1 FCC had suffered an early loss to ACM in the first round and were scratching and clawing to climb out of the hole that they dug for themselves. But as we all know, the only way out is through. The Cougars began to find a rhythm and started their ascent back to the summit by winning three straight. First it was Garrett in a 16-9 rollercoaster of a game, followed by a 2-1 pitcher's duel over Allegany, and completed the trifecta with a late comeback win over Hagerstown 6-3. It set the stage for a winner-takes-all matchup this afternoon between fierce rivals located just 30 minutes from each other.

The game began with FCC scoring a couple runs in the bottom of the 2^nd while the Hawks still hadn't quite found their footing. They would later get on the board after 2 singles by Griffin Lowman and Kaden Jackson put "ducks on the pond" for Quinn Illig to drive in a run on a 2-out single making the score a bit closer at 1-2. FCC then immediately scored another 2-out run themselves in the bottom of the same inning, putting them back up by 2.

The top of the 6^th is where the Hawks began to give the Cougars a run for the money. After a leadoff walk from Aidan Grudzinski, Isaac Grove singled, followed by a Kyle Lore base on balls to load the bases with 1 out. Despite a pitching change for Frederick, the bottom of the lineup was up for the challenge. Lowman drew another walk, forcing home a run to pull the score to 2-3. That is when "K-Jack" hit a 2 RBI double to opposite field to put the Hawks out in front, 4-3 with 4 innings to go.

FCC would not be denied though as they proceeded to put up 3 runs in the bottom half of the 6^th and put the Hawks postseason run on life support. In the top of the 9^th, Hagerstown did not go down without a fight as they worked the bases loaded with 2 outs and had the tying run on 2^nd base. The Cougars switched pitchers twice throughout the inning as they struggled to find the strike zone, but ultimately, they got out of the jam forcing a Hawks groundout to end the game.

It was certainly a gut-wrenching end for the 2024-25 Hawks Baseball team, but the highlights outweighed the lowlights. Finishing the season with a 42-18 record, up from an 18-32 season last year, that is no small feat. And while there are many great sophomores moving onto their next endeavors, the cupboard is far from bare in the Hagerstown dugout. They will return 3 starting pitchers, a diverse bullpen, and multiple offensive starters at the plate as they make a run at the postseason in 2026. Recruits have already begun to file in and the future appears as bright as ever for the Hawks.  

Best of luck to all the graduating Hagerstown CC baseball players! May you achieve all the goals you've set forth for yourselves as you continue your academic/athletic journeys!

That is a wrap on 2025, and until next year…GO HAWKS!!

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