The baseball team (16–4) defeated the Walter Johnson Wildcats (16–5–1), 9–2, in the regional championship on Tuesday afternoon. 

Sophomore pitcher Wells Twining led Whitman’s regional win. The right-hander pitched the entire game with seven innings of two-run ball. After a shaky first inning, where Twining allowed a run, the ace bounced back and remained consistent. The sophomore’s final line indicated near perfection as he only allowed five hits while striking out eight. 

Meanwhile, the fourth inning sealed the deal for Whitman as the offense rallied and put together seven runs. The scoring was stalled at one going into the fourth, and the Vikes knew they had to do damage. The inning didn’t start perfectly, as Whitman suffered two quick outs. However, back-to-back hits by junior John Wayman and senior Mitchell Hwang got the Vikes rolling. Then, senior Liam Bowen laced a triple over the center-fielder, plating two— Bowen’s second consecutive game with a triple. Following the bases-clearing triple, sophomore Sammy Berman, senior Gibson Hirt, and junior Giedon Schwartz all notched signals. Walter Johnson’s defense and pitching would deteriorate as errors and walks began, and suddenly, it was a 7–1 contest. 

The Wildcats, starter Jay Wandell has given trouble to the Vikings in the past, but today took the loss for Walter Johnson, going three and two-thirds while allowing seven runs on ten hits and walking two. Walter Johnson would go through four more pitchers for the rest of the game. 

“We grinded, and we had a big inning when we needed it,” said coach Joe Cassidy. “[And] today versus a kid who dominated us in the past is pretty sweet.”

The Vikings tallied 13 hits, as Wayman, Hirt, Schwartz, Berman, and Bowen registered multiple hits. In addition, Whitman recorded 33 at-bats, which is the most of any game this season. 

It was the Vike’s first regional championship since 2019. Part of their success this season has been the depth of the team. On Friday, Whitman will continue their run to the state finals when they play the Severna Park Falcons (20–3).