The baseball team defeated cross-town rival Walter Johnson, 10-5, improving their record to 5-1 on the season on April 4.

The boys took an early lead in their first at bat when third baseman Paul Balland singled to knock center fielder James Dionne in, who singled up the middle.  The team held an early 1-0 advantage heading into the bottom of the first inning.

Starting pitcher Mike West came out to take the mound for his second start of the year.  West struck two Wildcat batters out in the inning to maintain the lead.

Although designated hitter Andrew Castagnetti reached first base on an error to begin the inning, the Vikings recorded three straight outs to end the inning.

West continued to pitch well and fanned two more Wildcat hitters in the bottom of the second inning.

The Vikings got on the scoreboard and had a big inning in the top of the third.  Dionne started it off by reaching first base on an error by the Wildcat pitcher.  He stole second and advanced to third on another error, this time by the catcher.  Avayou singled under the Wildcat first baseman’s glove for the second Viking run.

Shortstop Michael Flack continued the scoring by slamming a homerun over the fence and into the parking lot in left field, scoring two more runs.  Despite the bases being cleared, Balland tripled to left center field to add another baserunner.  Left fielder Drew Aherne singled up the middle and scored Balland for the 5-0 lead.

After right fielder Michael Yang walked, first baseman Dan Duffy popped a ball up in right field.  However the Wildcat fielder was unable to locate the ball in the sun, and another two Vikings crossed the plate.

The Wildcats got one of the runs back in the bottom of the third inning because outfielder Robert Fertig singled over Flack’s head to bring in outfielder Ian Schapiro, who led off the inning with a triple.

However, the Vikings responded in the top of the fourth inning when Balland tripled for the second time to bring in Flack.  Aherne popped out, but Balland was able to score when he tagged up.  The Vikings took a 9-1 lead into the bottom of the inning.

The Wildcats tallied another run because third baseman Tyler Modjeska doubled and then came home on an error in the field.

Neither team was able to score in the fifth inning, so the Vikings held their 9-1 lead.

Balland walked with one out in the sixth and advanced to third on two pass balls.  Aherne singled Balland in again for the tenth run of the game.

West came out to pitch the complete game but was taken out after allowing an RBI single by Dylan Campbell.  Yang relieved West with one out in the inning.  Yang allowed a single that scored two runs, but the Wildcats would not get any closer.

“It feels great to continue playing strong,” Balland said.  “What we did today is score early and often.  We are undefeated in games where we score first, so it’s really key for us to take pressure off us and put it on them.  It also is nice when Michael [Flack] goes yard.”

The Vikings look to improve their record when they take on the Gaithersburg Trojans at home on April 6.