Rebels Rally in Playoffs

The Fannin Rebels had a great baseball season where they finished third in the 3A region 7. The Rebels were on a roll towards the end of their season, winning eight region games in a row. Fannin’s 7-11 region record advanced them into the first round of the state playoffs.

Fannin’s overall record for the season was 17-11. Over the whole season, the Rebels earned 183 runs while they had 138 scored on them. Friday, the Rebels traveled to Franklin County to play the first round of the state playoffs. It will be decided who will move on in the playoffs after the best two out of three games between the teams. Fannin walked away with a win for the first game of the night with an 11-7 victory while Franklin came back in the second game and claimed an 10-1 victory.

When asking head coach Jon Ayres his thoughts so far on the season, he stated,“The boys played well in the last half in our region schedule. We won eight games straight to end the region season and earned the number three seat. I feel like we have a good opportunity as we travel to Franklin County and play the best two out of three that will take place Friday and possibly Saturday. We are very excited for the opportunity and we’re looking forward to having a chance to move on in the state playoffs.” The whole team seemed to be excited about their accomplishment and eager to go compete. “I am very proud of our whole team this season. We have all worked very hard to get to where we are and hopefully we can continue to advance in the playoffs,” Rebel junior, Steven Stacey, shared with the FYN sports team.

The energy was high for Fannin in their first game of the night. The Rebels got their lead early in the second inning with a score of 6-1. It was a great night on offense for the Rebels, especially for Chandler Kendall and Jack Gobble who each scored a home run for the night. Kendall’s homer brought two of his teammates to home plate in the second inning while Gobble scored one run with his in the fifth. Not only were the Rebels on fire on offense, but also on defense. Rebel, Carson Beavers, had a great running catch in left field where he got the first out of the third inning. In the fourth inning, Chandler Kendall had a snatch at shortstop where he then threw to first basemen, Matthew Shirah, who had a stretching catch for the out. Matthew Shirah pitched the majority of the game where he walked five batters and struck out two. Rebels Tyler Norton, Garrett Rogers, Chandler Kendall, and Blake Rogers all came in the game to pitch and relieve one another. Fannin closed the first game with an 11-7 victory over Franklin County.

The second game was a different story for the Rebels. Fannin struggled to put the ball into action as well as contain Franklin on defense. Grant Baker pitched the majority of the game for Fannin where he walked three and struck out five. Rebels, Bryson Pack and Dylan Walton, came to the mound to relieve Baker after his four innings of pitching. Chandler Kendall continued his streak for the night and hit a home run, scoring Fannin’s only point. After seven innings of play, Franklin County defeated Fannin 10-1. With Fannin winning the first game and Franklin winning the second, the teams were matched up to play on Saturday to determine who would be advancing in the playoffs.