Hockett improves to 3-0 in holiday tourney

By George Bremer, Herald Bulletin Sports Writer

MUNCIE July 04, 2009 11:37 pm

— Pendleton Heights’ Nate Wechsler threw 6 1/3 solid innings, and Anderson Hockett topped Mishawaka 7-3 on Saturday at the John Miles Memorial Holiday Tournament.
Hockett improved to 3-0 in the round-robin event with games remaining today against Jay-Randolph (1 p.m.) and Muncie (6 p.m.) at McCullough Park.
“Wex pitched a great game,” acting Hockett manager Daren Hardesty said in a phone interview after the win. “He got to the third inning, and he was starting to wear down a little bit. We didn’t know how long he was going to stick around. But he hung in there, and he started getting outs. He did a nice job.”
Hardesty, a former star at Pendleton Heights, is coaching the team this weekend in place of Travis Keesling — who is on a pre-planned trip. Hardesty is Keesling’s pitching coach at Greenfield-Central.
He’s been particularly impressed with Hockett’s overall speed, and Post 127 made several plays on the basepaths Saturday.
Highland’s Taylor Hopkins stole two bases and scored two runs, and Lapel’s Devon Silvey walked twice and came around to score each time.
But the best baserunning play might have come late in the game from former Elwood star Darren Jones, according to Hardesty.
With a three-run lead and runners on the corners, Hardesty called for Jones to steal second. Jones, who just completed his freshman season at Trine University, made a smart baseball play. Caught in a rundown, he kept the infielders busy long enough for Highland’s Trevor Humes to score from third.
Jones also was Hockett’s only player with more than one hit, going 2-for-4 at the plate, and made several good defensive plays at third base.
“He had an all-around good day,” Hardesty said.
Former Liberty Christian star Tim Zeigler, now pitching at Indiana Wesleyan, closed out the game for his second save of the tournament.
“He has been (the closer), at least for the past few days since I’ve been here,” Hardesty said. “He’s got a little more pop on his ball than a couple of our other guys. He’s a college pitcher, too. And you can definitely tell he’s a little more composed when he goes out there.”
Hardesty has enjoyed his time with Hockett, and he’s impressed with the players’ knowledge of the game.
“We’ve got a nice assortment of 17- to 19-year-old kids who really know what they’re doing,” he said. “It’s fun, actually.”