After a long and treacherous season filled with many hardships and numerous doubters, the WS baseball team finished with a blowout of Western Branch 12-2 in the 6A Baseball State Championship last Saturday in Richmond.  

Just like the semifinals game against rival Lake Braddock, the Spartans found themselves trailing early. After the second inning head coach Jason Olms brought the team together to spark a groundswell. Olms advised them to swing to just make contact; the team had other ideas.

A one run second inning from Western Branch was quickly followed by a four run surge from the Spartans. Doubles from both junior Alec Reilly and senior Nick Johnson fueled the big inning.

“All I was trying to do was move the runners and I ended up scoring both runs,” said Reilly.

The Spartans never looked back from there. The massive second inning was followed by two more runs the next inning.

The Spartans did not stop there, though. The team solidified their win by scoring six more runs in the 5th inning capped by senior Jared Lyons’ grand slam.

Lyons also started on the mound for the Spartans and was dominant throughout the game.

“Pregame I knew we were going to get a great outing from [Jared],” said junior catcher David Giorgis. “Overall he controlled the flow of the game and made big pitches in big spots.”

Lyons pitched the first five innings and watched the final two from the dugout. Senior Kyle Martin was put in to close out the game.

As the Spartans reached two outs in the top of the seventh inning, the anticipation grew and the excitement was palpable. When the last out was finally recorded the dugout exploded and the celebration began.

“These are memories that we are going to remember for the rest of our lives,” said Johnson.

For the seniors it was the perfect farewell and for the juniors it is just the beginning of the journey to return next year.

“This season was my favorite by far, but not just because we won a state championship. Everyday was a grind and I loved every bit of it,” said Giorgis.