It was a tough way to end the season, especially for the Seniors who saw their high school baseball careers end with a 10 - 0 6-inning run rule at the hands of district rival Santa Fe. This second loss gave the Tribe a sweep, as Friendswood had lost the night before by a score of 5 - 3. Santa Fe now goes on the play Montgomery in the Regional Semi-Finals this next week.

The Mustang offense was lackluster at best, but did manage a couple of surges, once in the 2nd inning, and again in the 5th. In the 2nd, the Stangs played small ball, loading the bases on a combination of bunts and infield hits by Jayson McKinley, Gunnar Hollier, and Jordan Wood. Unfortunately, all runners were stranded as two strike outs were followed by a one hopper back to the pitcher, allowing the Indians to get out of the jamb. In the 5th, T.J. Scott doubled to the left center power alley with 2 outs, and was moved to third when Brent Janak singled up the middle. Again, the strike out proved our undoing, as both were left to languish on the base paths. In addition to the hits noted above, Christian Dao also managed an infield single in the 1st inning.

Santa Fe struck early and often, as they scored 3 in the 1st. They scored 1 in the 2nd, 2 in the 4th, 3 in the 5th, and 1 run in the 6th on a walk-off hit that created the 10 run deficit for the Mustangs. Errors, both physical and mental, hounded the Mustangs the entire game. Those, in combination with a strong hitting line-up for the Tribe, spelled disaster for the Mustangs.

Jordan Wood was on the bump to start the game for Friendswood, and took the loss as the Santa Fe hitters made it impossible for him to card an out while they tallied 3 runs. Jairus Alexander was pressed into service, and threw 5 2/3 innings, allowing 7 runs while striking out 3, issuing 4 walks , and pegging 2 Indians. Joe Taylor was brought in with 2 outs in the 6th, taking over an at-bat in progress, and was touched for the walk-off hit. Many of the 10 Indian runs were un-earned due to errors, and it was obvious the Mustangs were just not going to be able to muster much competition for the Indians on this particular day.

A tough loss, and a tough way to end the season for sure. However, we must celebrate the achievements of the season. Given the extremely slow start for the Mustang's year, and the much lower than anticipated batting averages on a team-wide basis, winning the Area Championship, and getting to the Regional Quarterfinals is no small accomplishment. This team has much reason for feeling a true sense of accomplishment, and can look back on the 2011-2012 season with pride.

A large returning class of Juniors, coupled with several underclassmen standouts, bodes well for the Mustangs chances in 2012-2013. Many thanks to all for the support and assistance with the team this season. On a personal note, I have greatly enjoyed handling the website, and hope that my game recaps were both fair and descriptive. It was always my intent to give credit whenever possible, and focus on the positive rather than things that might have gone wrong. Thank you all for the opportunity to be of service!

The Mustangs fell to the Indians last night as a late game rally fell short. The Mustangs face a must win tonight, as they take on Santa Fe at 7:00 PM at the Pearland High School diamond.

Things started out well for the Mustangs, as the Indians were retired in order in the top of the 1st, and the Stangs drew first blood in the bottom of the first frame. A two out infield single by Christian Dao was followed by an RBI Double blasted to the power ally in right by Jared Gaspard. Mustangs up 1 - 0. The lead was short lived, as the Indians came back to tie it up in the 2nd with an unearned run.

The game settled into a typical Friendswood vs. Santa Fe game for the next several innings. The Indians could mount no threat, as starting pitcher Will Hibbs cruised through the line-up scattering 2 hits over the next four innings. The Mustangs were frustrated, as inning after inning they were able to get runners on base, and most innings all the way to third base, but just couldn't come up with the timely hits needed to plate a run. Through the first 5 innings, the Mustangs stranded a total of 6 runners.

The sixth inning proved pivotal for the Indians. Back at the top of their line-up, the lead off batter reached on an error. The second batter was caught looking at a third strike for the 1st out, but then the Mustangs chose to pitch around the 3 hole hitter and walked him. This was followed by an intentional walk to the Indians clean up hitter to load the bases, still with one out. The next batter swung on the first pitch, and steered a soft liner through the drawn in Friendswood infield to plate the 2nd run of the night for the Tribe. With bases still loaded, the next hitter also picked on the first pitch, but popped out to very shallow center field, leaving the bases loaded with 2 outs. After falling behind 1-2, the Indian shortstop lined a 2 RBI drive past the third sacker and into left field. The next batter grounded out to first base, but the Indians had tallied 3 huge runs.

Friendswood mounted a come back in the bottom of the frame, as a one out walk to Walker Williams gave the Stangs a base runner. Gunnar Hollier then ripped an opposite field a triple to the wall in right center, scoring Williams from first. The next batter struck out, but Aaron Miller hit a shot to the shortstop, whose throw sailed wide of first base for an error, and another Mustang run. T.J. Scott stepped in, and drilled the first pitch he saw down the first base line into right field for a double, but Miller was held at third base as the ball was hustled back into the infield. The Indians then pulled their starter, and the Tribe closer did his job, getting a strike out for the third out and stranding Mustangs on 2nd and 3rd yet again.

Trailing 4-3, the Mustangs sent Jayson McKinley to the mound for the 7th inning. Big Mc got two quick outs on a strike out and a fly out to center, but the next two Indians in succession banged doubles to left field to plate the final run of the night for the Tribe. The Mustangs came in for last bats trailing by 2 runs. The first two hitters grounded out, then with 2 outs, Jordan Wood kept hope alive with a rip into center field. Unfortunately, it was not to be, as the Indian closer induced a ground ball to short for the final out of the game.

Will Hibbs took the loss for the Mustangs, going six innings and allowing 4 hits, while walking 2 and getting 11 strike outs. All four runs allowed were unearned. The Mustangs need a win tonight to extend the series and their season. Please come out and support your local nine!

Friendswood will take on Santa Fe in the Regional 1/4 Finals round this Thursday through Saturday. All games will be played at the Pearland High School baseball field in Pearland, TX.

Friendswood Sweeps Houston Furr in Two Straight to Claim the Area Championship

The Mustangs took the first game of the series with consistent hitting and pitching, downing the Furr Brahmas 9 - 1 at the Dawson High School diamond in Pearland Friday night. Furr came in to the game sporting a gaudy 19-5-1 season record, but were no match for Friendswood, as the Mustangs banged out 12 hits in route to the victory.

Mustangs with multiple hits included Brent Janak with two singles and Jordan Wood with two singles. T.J. Scott, Jared Gaspard, Heisyan Forero, Johhnie LeBlanc, and Aaron Miller collected a single each, while Jayson McKinley, Will Hibbs and Joe Taylor smashed doubles. Friendswood took the lead with a run in the first, and never looked back as they scored 2 in the third, 2 in the fourth, and 4 in the sixth.

Will Hibbs got the start for the Mustangs, and hurled his third straight complete game, going the full seven innings. His string of shut-out innings was ended at 19 in the 6th, as Furr inexplicably decided to squeeze in a run trailing 9-0. Hibbs scattered 4 hits over the seven innings, walked 2 Brahmas, and struck out 15.

Given the certainty of inclement weather Friday evening and into Saturday, the coaches and umpiring crew met immediately following game 1 and agreed to play a double header in an attempt to get the 2nd game of the series into the books. It proved a good decision, as our area was inundated with 5"-6" of rain overnight, as was most of the greater Houston area. The game was held up for about 30 minutes after the end of the 4th inning by a lightening delay, but the outcome was all but determined by that time.

As in game 1, the Mustangs struck quickly and often, carding 2 runs in the first, 4 runs in both the second and third, and their final single run in the 6th. Once again the Stangs banged out 12 hits. Leading the hit parade for the Mustangs were Aaron Miller going 3 for 3 with 2 singles and a double, and Jairus Alexander, smashing a triple and a double. Christian Dao collected two singles, while T.J. Scott, Jordan Wood, and Johnnie LeBlanc all collected one single. Brent Janak smacked a double, as did Heisyan Forero.

Jairus Alexander took the bump to start the game, and pitched 3 scoreless innings, limiting the Brahmas to 1 hit while striking out 3. Jared Gaspard came on to throw the 4th, striking out 2, while allowing only 1 hit and 2 unearned runs. After the lightening delay, Jayson McKinley took the mound to start the 5th. Big Mc shut the door, hurling 3 shut out innings while striking out 7.

Next up for the Mustangs will be a re-match with district rival Santa Fe. The Indians advanced Friday night by defeating Houston Reagan 4-1 in a single game format. The Wood vs. Fe Regional Quarter-Final match-up will likely take place at a local venue, perhaps Nolan Ryan Field at Alvin High School. Nothing has been determined as yet, but details will probably be announced on Monday.

Schedule / Time Change - Today's game versus Houston Furr has been moved up to 5:00 PM at Dawson H.S.

The Mustangs will take on the regular season champions of District 22-4A, the Houston Furr Brahmas, in a best 2 out of 3 series. The first game is this Friday evening at 7:30 PM, and all games will be played at Pearland Dawson.

Friendswood completed the sweep of the opening round of the play-offs Friday night by defeating the El Campo Ricebirds 1-0 down at Wildcat Field in Angleton. With the victory, the Mustangs take the Bi-District round, and await the winner of the Houston Furr – Houston Austin match-up from HISD for the Area round match-up.

The lone run of the game was scored by the Mustangs in the home half of the 2^nd inning. After a fly out to center field, Jayson McKinley crushed a ball off the wall in the left-center power alley for a double. A bouncer back to the pitcher moved big Mc to 3^rd, and he scored moments later as Will Hibbs bounced an RBI single through the hole and into right field.

The Stangs threatened in every inning except the 5^th, but were unable to score any more runs, stranding 7 Mustangs on the bases. Offensively, besides McKinley’s double, both Aaron Miller and Gunnar Hollier had singles, while T.J. Scott went 2 for 3 with 2 singles, and Hibbs went 2 for 2 with two singles including the big RBI in the 2^nd inning.

The Ricebirds didn’t get a runner beyond 2^nd base until the 6^th inning, when they mounted their most serious threat of the game. El Campo’s lead off hitter stroked a 3-2 pitch through the middle for a clean single. The next batter struck out, but the 3-hole hitter hit the first pitch he saw on a line almost to the fence in the left center power alley. Aaron Miller took a great angle to cut the ball off in front of the warning track and fire it back into cutoff man Wood at short to hold the lead runner at 3^rd base. With Ricebirds on 2^nd and 3^rd and only 1 out, the Friendswood Brain-Trust elected to intentionally walk the bases full to set up a force at any base. The decision was tested immediately, as the next batter slapped a hard grounder to 1^st base which was knocked down by Jared Gaspard. He snapped up the ball and fired a seed to a stretching Nick Treybig to force the runner out at the plate and deny the Ricebirds a run. With two down, Will Hibbs struck out the next hitter on three pitches for the final out of the inning.

The 7^th inning went 3 up 3 down. Hibbs got his 9^th K of the night, striking out the first hitter. The second batter lofted an opposite field Texas Leaguer that looked as though it might fall just beyond the grasp of our second sacker, but Brent Janak found another gear and managed to flag down the humped back liner in short right field for the 2^nd out on a Blue Star play! The next batter was jambed by the first pitch, and hit a weak grounder into “no-man’s land” between 1^st and 2^nd base. Gaspard fired off the bag to back-hand the grounder, and flipped the ball to the covering pitcher Hibbs for the final out of the game.

Will Hibbs got the start for Friendswood, and pitched a complete game shut out, scattering 5 hits while striking out 9 Ricebirds, and issuing one intentional walk. The game was filled with sparkling defensive efforts, especially those noted above by Wood, Janak, Gaspard and Miller. Nick Treybig had an exceptional game behind the plate, hosing a Ricebird trying to pilfer the keystone sack in the first inning, blocking many balls in the dirt, and calling a great game from a pitch selection standpoint. It was a true team effort and a true team win!

Texas City 4 – Lamar Consolidated 8 (Texas City loses series 0-2 and is out of play-offs)

Glaveston Ball 3 - George Ranch 12 (series tied 1-1 with game 3 at 2 PM at Brazoswood)

Don't forget to get your play-off shirt orders in to Randy Alexander right away!

The annual baseball banquet will be held Monday, May 7th at 7:00 PM at La Brisa Mexican Restaurant. The banquet is for all players on all teams, so please make sure to put it on your schedule.

The Booster Club will sponsor all the players, so they may attend at no charge. Parents and guests (i.e. "girlfriends"!) will need to pay $15 per person to cover the cost of the meal. We need to give an accurate head count to the restaurant, so please RSVP at your earliest convenience via e-mail to:

You may pay for the event in several ways. You can click on the "donate" button above to pay via Paypal. You can mail a check made payable to FMBC to:

If you are truly brave, you can even e-mail Randy your VISA or MasterCard number, however you should know he has been talking a lot about a new driver that is bound to add at least 20 yards......... I'm just sayin!

La Brisa Mexican Restaurant is just north of the intersection of FM 518 and I-45 behind Sudie's Restaurant (Catfish Kitchen).

Game one of the Bi-District play-offs turned out to be a real pitcher's duel, as the Mustang's Jordan Wood outlasted the Rice Bird's Camden Green, throwing a complete game one hitter! Wood finished with 6 strike outs and 2 walks, while allowing just the one hit. The one run scored by El Campo was unearned.

The El Campo hurler was all business, striking out 10 and giving up just 2 hits, but walked 4 and hit 1 Mustang. The home team Ricebirds struck first, tallying their lone run in the bottom half of the 2nd, as their only hit came from the lead-off man in the form of a slicing double down the left field line. It looked as though he would be stranded at second, as Wood struck out the next hitter, and induced a lazy fly to right from the next batter for out number 2. Unfortunately, the error bug bit the Stangs, as the next 2 batters reached and allowed the run to score.

Friendswood could do nothing productive with the Ricebird moundsman, as the first five Mustangs went down on strikes, as did 7 of our first 8 hitters. A walk and an El Campo error gave us 2 base runners in the 3rd, but both were left on the sacks. We scored our first run in the top of the 4th, as a lead off walk to DH Christian Dao, combined with a throwing error on the Ricebird catcher, set us up with men on 2nd and 3rd with no outs. Jordan Wood helped his own cause, with a sacrifice fly to right center, plating Dao to knot the score a 1-1.

The top of the fifth started out poorly, as we had two quick outs via a K and a ground out to 1st base. The Mustangs then showed some patience at the plate, as both Aaron Miller and T.J. Scott worked walks to put Mustangs at 1st and 2nd. Brent Janak dug in at the plate, and on an 0-2 count, slapped a hard line drive RBI single through the hole and into right field, plating Miller with the go ahead run. In the 6th a lead off single, on a sharp shot up the middle by Jared Gaspard and a subsequent steal of 2nd base by Gaspard went unrewarded, as the next three Mustangs were retired in order. The 7th inning saw a HBP and sacrifice bunt move a runner into scoring position for the Stangs, but he was left standing at the keystone sack as the side was retired on a K and a fly out to right.

Jordan Wood, along with an air tight defense, blanked the Birds after their lone run in the 2nd. The only real threat mounted by El Campo came with 2 out in the bottom of the 7th inning, as a Ricebird walked on the 9th pitch of an at bat where most of the Friendswood Faithful thought he had been struck out at least twice. The next hitter was conked on the noggin by a curve ball that got away, placing Birds on 1st and 2nd. With the count 2 and 2 on the next hitter, the El Campo runner at 2nd base decided to try to steal third, and Mustang stalwart backstop Nick Treybig gunned him down by three steps ending the game!

An outstanding pitching job by Jordan Wood, and timely hits combined with a little "small ball" paid big dividends for the Mustangs as they now lead the three game series 1-0. Game two will be tonight at Angleton Wildcat field at 7 PM.

Friendswood dug themselves into a hole in the second inning, giving up 6 runs. FHS could not plate a runner even though they loaded the bases twice. Many knocks were hit hard, just at somebody.

It was 7-0 going into the sixth inning when the Mustangs' bats finally put together a string of hits that plated 6 runs. Eleven men came to the plate. After getting a lead off runner on base in the seventh, and bunting him to second, two fly balls ended the game. 7-6 Santa Fe.

The Sophomores closed out their season with a strong district win on the road over a tough Santa Fe Indian team that had given the Sophs their only district loss of the season. The win was even more satisfying as Santa Fe pulled a handful of Sophomore players from their JV team to try to wrest the last game of the season from the Mustangs.

Their 12-1 District record allows the Sophomore Team to claim the undisputed district champ title. Clear Falls finished with two losses, both to Friendswood, and Santa Fe finished with four losses.

Evan McDonald got the start with Coach Slater allowing most of the Mustang pitching staff to get an inning’s worth of work. EMac held the Indians scoreless in the first. Mustang bats got started early in the bottom half with two runs on three hits. Colin Wright led off with a single, stole second, and scored on Austin James’ single. Tucker Oliver hit a sharp liner over 3rd for a double scoring James. 2-0 Mustangs.

The Mustangs added a run in the 2nd with Andrew Zehentner’s single down the 3rd base line, moving to 2nd on a passed ball, and scoring on Evan McDonald’s single up the middle. Eric Spong, Andrew Kolodziej, and Lucky Perry held the Indians scoreless in the top half of the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th innings respectively with Perry striking out the side in his turn on the bump.

The Sophomores added two runs in the 4th on an Austin James lead off single, Eric Spong’s triple down the 3rd base line, and Travis Leblanc’s infield hit. Mustangs up 5-0 going into the 5th inning. Mustang pitchers struggled in the 5th loading the bases on a hit batter and two walks. A third walk brought in the first run and a ground rule double over the Left Field wall pulled the Indians to within 2 runs, Mustangs up 5-3. Another double in the left center gap tied the score at 5 runs before the Mustangs could get out of the inning.

Andrew Zehentner led off the 5th with a triple to the left center fence scoring what would be the winning run on a passed ball. Evan McDonald and Christian Dupriest followed with walks. McDonald scored when the throw to first went wide off Austin James’ perfect sac bunt. Dupriest scored on a passed ball before Kyle Smith pounded his longest shot of the season just short of the center field wall scoring James. Travis Leblanc lined a single to center to score Smith with the Mustangs leading 10-5 going into the bottom of the 6th.

Eric Spong returned to the mound to close out the game striking out two Santa Fe batters ending the season.

The Mustangs outhit Santa Fe, 12-7 with four Mustangs collecting two hits each: Austin James and Travis LeBlanc each had two singles, Tucker Oliver contributed a double and a single, and Andrew Zehentner added a triple and single.

As of right now, and unofficially, we anticipate we will play the El Campo Ricebirds in the Bi-District round of the play-offs. They are the second place team from District 23-4A. We believe the games will be played at Angleton High School in Angleton, TX, and will be this Thursday and Friday ( 5/3 & 5/4) at 7 PM. Game three, if needed, will also be played at Angleton at 7 PM on Saturday evening.

The Mustangs traveled to Panther country Monday night, and won the game 6 to 4, but ultimately LOST the game as far as the standings are concerned. Unfortunately, we scheduled one too many games this season, so with the completion of the Ridge Point game, we were officially over the limit and were required to forfeit the victory.

The Stangs led the entire game, scoring 4 runs in the 2nd, 1 in the 3rd, and adding one more in the 6th. Singles were collected by T.J. Scott, Jared Gaspard, Walker Williams, Nick Treybig and Johnnie LeBlanc, while Jordan Wood smacked a double to right center.

It was "pitching by committee" on the bump for the Mustangs, as Wood got the start and threw 1 2/3 innings of no hit ball striking out 4. Jairus Alexander followed with 1 1/3 innings, allowing 1 hit, 2 unearned runs and striking out 2. Jayson McKinley pitched one inning, allowing no hits and striking out 2, followed by an inning from Brent Janak (1 hit, 2 runs, 1 K), an inning from Joe Taylor (no hits, 1K, 3 up - 3 down), and finally Aaron Miller (no hits, 3 up - 3 down).

Obviously, the Mustangs used this game as a warm up for the post season, while keeping an eye on several other critical final games in the district. In those match-ups, Santa Fe beat Texas City 4-1, insuring a solo third place finish for the home town nine! Ball beat Manvel 10-4, while Dawson shut out Clear Falls 4-0.

Final standings are in the table on the right, but with the 3 way tie for 4th, additional games will be played today. Unofficially, Santa Fe gets 1st with Galveston Ball in 2nd, Friendswood secures 3rd, and Texas City, Ridge Point and Dawson will play off for the 4th and final spot.

On a hot and humid Saturday afternoon, the Mustangs held their play-off future in their own hands as they hosted the 1st place Santa Fe Indians at Bobby Black field on the FHS campus. Santa Fe, with a record of 12-2, had already clinched a play-off spot, while the Mustangs, at 8-6, were looking at a possible 4 or 5 team log jamb for a play-off birth.

After a nice double play kept the Indians in check in the top of the 1st, the Mustangs tallied their first run on the strength of back to back doubles from the bats of Brent Janak and Christian Dao. With one down, Janak hit a high fly ball that smacked off the fence in right field, and pulled into 2nd with a stand up double. Not to be out done, Dao ripped a shot down the 3rd base line, plating Janak with the double.

The teams then traded scoreless innings in the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th, as the Mustangs threatened every inning, but could not get anyone across the pay station. The Indians were equally hapless, as a couple of hits and walks gave them base runners, but no payoff. Their biggest threat came in the 4th, when with runners on 1st and 3rd and 2 outs, the Indian hitter smacked a hard grounder into the hole between short and third. Jordan Wood quickly donned his Superman cape, as he back handed the grounder and flipped the ball to second while sliding on a knee towards the 3rd base line, just nipping the Indian runner for the last out of the inning.

Going into the sixth with the Mustangs still up 1-0, the Indians were retired 1-2-3 with the help of a nifty sliding catch in right field by Gunnar Hollier. The Stangs finally decided to add a little padding in the bottom of the sixth, as Dao collected his 3rd hit of the day, followed by Jared Gaspard's Hit By Pitch, and Jordan Wood beating out a bunt single. With the bases loaded, Heisyan Forero got an RBI as he grounded out to third base. The Stangs struck again as, with Will HIbbs at the plate, a passed ball allowed Gaspard to scamper home with run number 3.

Up 3-0 going to the top of the 7th, the Indians were down to their last bats. Three hitters later, after two ground outs and a pop up to third, the Indians were defeated, and the Mustangs had punched their ticket to the playoffs!

The Mustangs collected 7 hits on the day, with TJ Scott and Jordan Wood beating out bunt singles, Will Hibbs singling up the middle, Brent Janak doubling off the right field wall, and the offensive behemoth of the day, Christian Dao, collecting a double down the left field line, a double over the head of the right fielder, and a single through the hole between short and third.

Will Hibbs got the start for the Mustangs, and went the distance, pitching a complete game shutout. He scattered 3 hits over the 7 innings, while issuing 3 walks and striking out 3 Indians. The Mustangs finally put it all together, at the time when they most needed it. They combined excellent pitching with outstanding fielding and timely hitting to pick up arguably their biggest victory of the season.

The Mustangs next play Monday night, traveling to Ridge Point to take on the Panthers in the final district game of the year. Game time is at 7 PM at the Ridge Point field. Unfortunately, due to a scheduling abnormality, it looks as though the Mustangs will have to forfeit that game no matter the actual outcome. That made the Santa Fe victory even more important.

The Varsity's last home game of the season will be against Santa Fe on Saturday, April 28th at 1 PM. We will hold our annual "Senior Day" at that game, which gives special recognition to our senior players during a pregame ceremony.

If possible, please plan to arrive early (by 12:30 PM) in order to show your appreciation to this dedicated group of young men.

This year's Seniors are: Jairus Alexander, Heisyan Forero, Jared Gaspard, Will Hibbs, Joe Kalla, Omar Martinez and Jayson McKinley.

If your senior has determined what they will do post graduation, we would like to announce that. Please let Randy know the particulars if those decisions have been made (i.e. school planning to attend, major, will they play baseball, going into the military, etc.). Randy put a couple of examples into his recent e-mail which may help you with your wording.

The Mustangs had an opportunity to all but cement a play-off spot last night with a win over the Manvel Mavericks. Unfortunately, Manvel decided to play spoiler, and refused to cooperate with the Mustangs plans. On another night of frustration at the plate for the home town nine, the Stangs mustered only 4 singles in 7 innings, as they fell to the Mavericks.

Defensively, the Mustangs helped the Mavericks out with 3 errors that all contributed to scores for Manvel. The Mavericks got on the board in the first, as the lead off hitter came around to score after reaching on an error. The Mavs scored 2 more in the second, when a lead-off single and a walk put runners in position, and both were plated by another single and an error.

That was all Manvel could do offensively, but it proved more than enough, as the Mustangs were unable to get anything going. Friendswood managed to get one runner on base in each of the first 6 innings, but typically with 2 outs in the inning, and all 6 runners were left on the bags. T.J. Scott was the only bright spot with the stick for the Stangs, as he went 2 for 3 with 2 nice singles. Gunnar Hollier and Johnnie LeBlanc also collected singles for the Mustangs.

Jordan Wood started on the bump for Friendswood, going 3 innings, striking out 3 and walking 4 while allowing 3 hits and 3 runs, only one of them earned. Jairus Alexander came in to hurl the final 3 innings, striking out 3, walking 2, giving up 1 hit and allowing no runs.

While the loss does not eliminate the possibility of play-offs for the Mustangs, it certainly make it much more problematic given strength of remaining schedules for teams in the hunt. Friendswood was helped out a bit last night as Ball defeated Dawson, while Clear Falls upset Ridge Point.

Next game for the Mustangs will be Saturday, April 28th at Bobby Black Field at 1 PM. This will be the last regularly scheduled home game for the season, and will be "Senior Day" for our seven graduating seniors.

Manvel scratched out a run in the first, but the Mustangs came back with a run of their own to tie the game at 1-1. A run in the third and another in the fifth put Friendswood up 3-1 after 5 innings. The game was broken open, however, in the sixth, with the Mustangs sending 12 batters to the plate. Several errors, more walks, and some timely hits plated eight runs to end the game at 11-1. Makransky pitched 5 innings, and Kaufman cleaned up the sixth.

story by Bob Zehentner

The Sophomore Team continued their winning ways on Saturday beating Manvel for the second time this season raising their District record to 11-1 and reaching the 20-win season mark with an overall record of 20-4-1 with one game remaining.

Lucky Perry started on the mound and gave up 2 runs on 2 hits and an error in the top of the 1st.

The Mustangs led off in the bottom half with two consecutive singles by Clayton Stanford and Andrew Zehentner. Tucker Oliver ground into a double play at third followed by Colin Rickard’s walk. Andrew Kolodziej’s infield single loaded the bases with Zehentner later scoring the Mustangs first run with a Manvel pitcher balk. Jesse Brewster hit a liner to RF scoring two making the score 3-2, Mustangs up at the end of one.

Perry held Manvel in the top of the second and the Mustangs started off the second inning as they had in the first with both Stanford and Zehentner getting on base with a walk and a hit by pitch. Oliver was also hit by a pitch to load the bases for Colin Rickard’s sac fly scoring Stanford. A double steal put runners on 2nd and 3rd. Zehentner scored after tagging up on foul fly ball outside the right field line. Alex Valdez, pinch running for Oliver, scored on a dropped fly ball behind first base with the Mustangs adding three runs in the 2nd, Mustangs up 6-2.

Evan MacDonald came in to pitch two scoreless innings in the 3rd and 4th inning. Manvel got a run back in the fifth with two hits and a hit batter bringing the score to 6-3. Mustang bats fell silent in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th innings with the score at 6-3 going into the 6th inning.

Manvel’s bats got hot in the 6th inning scoring 3 runs on 4 hits tying the game at 6 runs each. Eric Spong came on in relief to put out the fire.

Tucker Oliver led off the bottom of the 6th with a triple over the CF’s head to start off the inning. Travis LeBlanc walked with Valdez coming in to pinch run. Spong hit a hot ground ball right at the third baseman for the 1st out. Kyle Smith hit a Texas Leaguer behind 1st base scoring Oliver for what would be the winning run. Mustangs up 7-6. MacDonald then hit a smash past 3rd base scoring Valdez. Perry got on via error loading the bases for Austin James with two outs who doubled over the LF’s head scoring three making the final score 11-6 when the game was called due to time.

The Mustang Sophomores close out their season next Saturday morning at Sante Fe. The Indians gave the Sophomores their only district loss of the season having a 1-1 record against the Mustang Sophs.

On a gorgeous night for baseball, the Mustangs defeated a tough Clear Falls Knights team by one run at Bobby Black Stadium in Friendswood, Texas. This marked the fourth meeting of the teams this season, with Friendswood taking the series 3 games to 1.

The Knights wasted no time in letting the Mustangs know they were ready to play, as they used walks to the first two batters, coupled with some savvy base running, to put 2 big runs on the board in the top of the first. The scored stayed 2-0 in favor of Clear Falls until the home half of the 3rd, when Friendswood roared back to score 3 runs and take the lead. Aaron Miller reached on a lead-off single up the middle, and a throwing error on Johnnie LeBlanc's grounder to short put Mustangs on 1st & 2nd. Following a ground out to short, Brent Janak blasted an RBI double to the wall in left center, plating Miller. The Knight's hurler struck out the next hitter for out number 2, but Jordan Wood smacked a 2 RBI single up the middle, scoring LeBlanc and Janak.

Clear Falls managed another run in the top of the 5th to knot the score at 3-3, but the Mustangs took advantage of a critical Knights miscue in the bottom of the 6th to take the lead for good. A lead off walk to Wood was followed by a strike out and a fielder's choice out at second. With a runner on first and 2 down, it looked as though the Mustangs were going to put up a goose egg once again. However, Will Hibbs singled through the hole and into right field, allowing Walker Williams to get all the way to 3rd base. Aaron Miller, refusing to go quietly, then waged war with the Clear Falls moundsman, working a full count after 7 pitches. The 8th pitch was lifted to mid right field for what looked to be an easy 3rd out. The Knight's right fielder ran in a bit too far on the ball, and the slight wind moved it even further from the infield. The now retreating fielder was able to get a glove on the ball, but it bounced out of his webbing to fall onto the outfield grass and two Mustangs stampeded across the dish before the ball was retrieved and thrown back into the infield! A tough break for the Knights, but that is, as they say, baseball.

Going into the top of the 7th, the Mustangs were up 5-3. The never-say-die Knights made sure the local fans had their heart medication handy, as the first batter punched a line drive down the first base line for a lead-off double. The next two hitters struck out, and the fans began to breath easier with a 2 run lead and 2 outs in the 7th. Not so fast..........it ain't over till the corpulent one warbles! A walk to the next batter, followed by a fluke infield nubber with incredible english that spun away from our 3rd baseman, loaded the bases with Knights. The next batter takes a ball high, then, on a controversial call, is ruled to have been hit by a pitch, forcing in a run for the Knights. So with the bases loaded and two outs, the 5-hole hitter for Clear Falls steps in with his team trailing by only one run. Two fastballs puts him in an 0-2 hole, but then he fails to bite on three consecutive pitches, running the count full. The 3-2 pitch comes to the plate, and the hitter keeps his bat glued to his shoulder. Unfortunately for him, the home plate umpire emphatically rings him up for a called third strike on the outside corner to end the game. GOOD GUYS WIN!!!!

The Mustangs collected only 4 hits on the night, with 3 of those coming in the 3rd inning when Janak had the double, and both Wood and Miller collected singles. The last hit was Hibbs' single in the 6th. Jayson McKinley got the start on the bump for the Mustangs and went 2 innings, striking out 3, walking 2, allowing only 1 hit, and giving up 2 runs. Jairus Alexander pitched the next 2 1/3, striking out 1 and walking 3, while giving up 2 hits and 1 run. Will Hibbs came in with one out in the 5th to throw the final 2 2/3 innings, picking up the win while striking out 5, walking 1, hitting 1, and allowing 2 hits and 1 run.

The win was huge for the Mustangs, as it helped solidify their 3rd place position in district, behind Santa Fe and Galveston Ball. The Stangs travel to Manvel Friday night in what is another "must-win" on the road to the 2012 playoffs. Y'all come!!

The Mustangs lost to Clear Falls by one, moving their season record to 16-4-2, and their district record to 8-2-1.

The Mustang Sophomore team blanked Clear Falls on Tuesday night with the Knights only prior district loss (4-2) coming at the hands of the Mustangs earlier in the season.

Eric Spong went the distance on the mound, yielding only 2 hits and 1 walk while striking out 5 Clear Falls batters.

Colin Wright had a perfect 4 for 4 night at the plate, spraying line drives all over the outfield. The Mustangs outhit Clear Falls 8 to 2 with Clayton Stanford doubling over the left fielder and with singles added by Tucker Oliver, Lucky Perry, and Andrew Kolodziej.

The win brings the Sophomore record to 19-4-1 overall and 10-1 in district with their sole loss to Santa Fe. The Mustangs have two games remaining, playing Manvel at home on Friday at 4:30 PM and traveling to Santa Fe a week from Saturday.

As expected, the Mustangs claimed a victory over an improving but over-matched La Marque Cougars varsity team Friday night down in La Marque. The Mustangs put up 5 in the 1st, 3 in the 2nd, 4 in the 3rd, 3 in the 4th and 3 in the fifth on their way to a run rule, 5 inning win. Love those "crooked numbers"!!! The Mustang bats feasted on Cougar pitching, racking up 14 hits to go along with the 18 runs. Big sticks for the night were Aaron Miller going 2 for 3 with a homerun and single, Walker Williams going 3 for 4 with 2 doubles and a single, Christian Dao going 2 for 5 with 2 doubles, Joe Taylor going 2 for 3 with a double and a single, and Jairus Alexander going 2 for 3 with a homerun and a single.

Jairus Alexander got the nod on the bump for the Stangs, and picked up the W, going 3 innings, allowing only 1 hit, while striking out 6, and giving up 2 unearned runs. Jayson McKinley came on to throw the 4th, faced 4 batters, issued one walk, but struck out the side. Will Hibbs mopped up the 5th and final inning, facing 3 Cougars and carding 2 K's. The victory moves Alexander's season record to a team leading 5 - 1, and dropped the team district ERA to a stingy 1.81.

Next week is huge for the Mustangs, as they seek to solidify their hold on a play-off slot. Next Tuesday night provides the Stangs with a chance to avenge an earlier defeat, as they host the Clear Falls Knights. Next Friday, the Mustangs mosey to Manvel and need to mangle the Mavericks to make it 2-0 for the district season. Currently, the Mustangs are in sole possession of third place, but need those victories next week to maintain their hold.

The Sophomore Mustangs played arguably their toughest opponent of the season, Lamar, to a 7-inning tie in a non-district game on Friday night. The game saw the lead change hands several times. It was easily the most exciting game of the season.

Lamar jumped out to a quick lead scoring 3 in the 2nd and adding 1 in the third inning off Mustang starter Andrew Kolodjai to take a 4-0 lead after three innings. The Mustangs faced some of the toughest pitching of the year with 5 of the first 6 batters striking out and the Mustangs not getting a base runner until Austin James was hit by a full-count fastball in the 4th inning. Eric Spong, hitting in the 3 spot, hit a fastball in the 5.5 hole to move Austin to second. Kyle Smith singled to right field scoring James and moving Spong to third. Tucker Oliver then tripled in the right-center gap scoring Spong and Smith closing the gap to 4-3. The next batter struck out. Colin Rickard got a pinch-hit walk and stole second, but the next batter struck out stranding Oliver and Rickard.

Some great defensive plays prevented any scoring until the bottom of the 6th inning. Eric Spong was robbed of a hit when he hit a smash in the 5.5 hole with the Lamar 3rd baseman doing his best Brooks Robinson imitation (yeah, I’m dating myself!) making a diving stab of the ground ball and scrambling to his feet to throw Eric out at 1st. Kyle Smith singled up the middle. Alex Valdez, pinch running for Smith, moved to 2nd on a passed ball and on to third on a pick-off throw that ended up in center field. Travis LeBlanc then doubled to right center scoring Valdez tying the score at 4. Alex “Lucky” Perry pinch ran for LeBlanc. Colin Rickard got on via an infield single with an error on the throw to first allowing the speedy Perry to cross the plate giving the Mustangs their first lead of the game, 5-4. Clayton Stanford then lined a single to left center scoring Rickard and increasing the lead 6 to 4. Andrew Zehentner slapped a sharp ground ball right at the second baseman to end the inning. Mustangs leading 6 - 4 going into the final inning.

After Kolodjai retired the first two Lamar hitters and the Mustangs were one out from a win, the next two batters singled to put runners on 1st and 2nd. The third Lamar batter singled to right field pulling Lamar to within one, 6-5. The next batter smashed a numbers-high Kolodjai change-up to the right center gap for a triple scoring two and putting Lamar back in the lead, 7-6. The next Lamar hitter lined to CF ending the inning bringing up the top of the Mustang order in the bottom of the 7th, Mustangs trailing 7-6.

Lead-off Colin Wright hit a soft liner to SS for out number 1. Austin James watched a curveball for strike 3. With two outs, Eric Spong worked two Lamar pitchers for a walk. Kyle Smith hit a Texas Leaguer hitting the RF line behind 1st base moving Spong to third. Lucky Perry, pinch running for Smith, stole second, causing Lamar to give an intentional pass to Tucker Oliver, loading the bases and setting up a force. Travis LeBlanc worked the pitcher for a walk scoring Spong and tying the game at 7. The next batter struck out on a high fastball stranding three Mustang base runners.

The umpires called the game after 7 innings to allow the JV game to start on time. Andrew Kolodjai pitched a complete game with 5 Ks in 7 innings. Three Lamar pitchers combined to strike out 10 Mustangs. Lamar outhit the Mustangs 9 to 8 in this close battle.

It looked like it was going to be a high scoring game, as both teams scored 2 in the first. Lamar scored 2 more in the second, where it stayed for the next several innings. Cooley pitched 3 1/3 before Tinger took over and went the rest of the way. The Mustangs scored 1 in the fifth to make it 4-3, but Lamar put up another run on a walk and several wild pitched in the seventh, making it 5-3. Friendswood ran into a little luck of their own in the seventh after a fly ball to right was dropped, helping to tie the score at 5 apiece. A running error created the second out but left two men on the corners with two outs, but a strikeout ended the inning. After Tinger got a 1-2-3 eighth, the Mustangs had men at 1st and 2nd with nobody out, but could not get down a bunt. A fly ball and a strikeout ended the game in a tie, 5-5.

In a must win game at Bobby Black Field last night, the Mustangs defeated the Dawson Eagles with a walk off RBI single in the bottom of the seventh inning. Despite numerous scoring threats (the Mustangs left at least one runner on base in every inning!), it took last inning heroics from T.J. Scott to plate the winning, and the only, run of the game.

The Mustangs expected to face University of Texas commit Travis Duke last night, but with Duke not even dressed out due to a hamstring injury, the Mustangs got all they wanted from another Eagle Southpaw by the name of Kyle Beaty. The rangy Junior lefthander pitched a whale of a game, scattering seven hits over 6 1/3 innings, walking only 2, and striking out 8. Of the 7 mustang hits, 5 came from the top 3 hitters, as Scott went 3 for 4, and both Jordan Wood and Brent Janak collected a hit apiece. Jayson McKinley and Johnnie LeBlanc tallied the other two hits for Friendswood.

The major drama of the evening was saved for the final inning, as pinch-hitter Walker Williams worked a walk from Beaty, and was moved into scoring position at second base by a perfect sacrifice bunt off the bat of pinch-hitter Gunnar Hollier. Scott stepped in and produced his fourth opposite field effort of the night, slashing a vicious one hopper directly at the Dawson third baseman. The shot was too hot to handle, ricocheting into left field, and Williams hustled across the plate with the winning run.

Jordan Wood went the distance on the mound, twirling a masterful one-hitter for his second district win of this year's campaign. Wood overcame four defensive errors in the game, struck out 10 while walking 2 and clipping one Eagle on the wing. The lone hit for Dawson came in the top of the 6th inning, when their two-hole hitter managed a grounder through the hole between third and short on a 2-2 change up.

The victory moves Friendswood district record to 6-5, while dropping the Eagles to 5-6. Friendswood is now in fourth place in district, 1/2 game behind third place Texas City. The Mustangs travel down to La Marque on Friday night for their second district tilt with the Cougars.

This game looked like it was going to be a rout early as the Mustangs sent 9 batters to the plate in the second, scoring four to make it a 5-0 game. Some sloppy play and timely "seeing-eye" hits allowed Dawson to score 3 in the third and 2 in the fourth to tie the game at 5-5. Friendswood scored four more times in the fifth to provide a nice cushion, since Dawson scored 2 more in the seventh to make the final score 9-7. Makransky went four innings and Kaufman finished the last three.

The Mustang Sophomore team shellacked Pearland Dawson 15-0 in four innings on Tuesday night. This was the second time the Mustangs "run-ruled" Dawson this year. Eric Spong gave up only two hits over four innings and struck out 5 Eagles while a trio of Dawson pitchers struggled to find the plate giving up 11 free passes. Mustang batters collected 8 hits with Kyle Smith leading the way with three. Five other Mustangs hit safely with Tucker Oliver tripling in the Left-Center Field gap.

Nothing much good to say about this game folks. We started out badly, and didn't get much better as the night progressed. Offensively, a freshman lefty throwing sub 80 mph fastballs and sub 70 mph curves completely baffled us for the first three innings, retiring the side in order in the 1st and 2nd, before giving up a single to Aaron Miller in the 3rd. That came to naught as we were picked off trying to steal second.

Innings 4 through 6 didn't get much better, as a harder throwing righty continued the domination. After going down in order in the 4th, Jayson McKinley managed a single in the 5th which was followed by a walk to give us our only "threat" of the game. The Tor pitcher, however, combined a strike out to the batter before Big Mac, with back to back K's after the walk, to strike out the side and strand the runners. The 6th saw us with one runner due to a 2-out walk, but we could not capitalize.

Billy Williams came in for the 7th with his 90 mph plus fastball. Heisyan Forero managed a deep fly to right for an out, and the next two Mustangs went down on strikes to end the game. We finished with just 2 hits, while the Tor pitching staff combined for 9 strike outs.

Starter Jordan Wood got the loss, allowing 4 runs in 2 innings of work. Joe Taylor worked the next two innings allowing 2 runs. Aaron Miller threw the 5th inning, and gave up 2. Will Hibbs pitched a scoreless 6th inning. The Tor's Kyle Ott was the major thorn in the side of the Mustang moundsmen, going 3 for 3 with a 1st inning double, a 3rd inning triple, and a 5th inning home run.

The loss drops our district record back to 5-5, while moving the Tors ahead of us to 6-4. We are still in the hunt, as all the district 24-4A teams continue to beat up on one another. Next week's match-ups will be critical We need to take one from Dawson on our field, and then should get the W as we visit the game, but over-matched La Marque Cougars.

The game was fairly close through 3 innings, with Mustangs leading 3 - 1. Friendswood broke it open, however, in the 4th, sending 9 men to the plate and scoring 5 runss. Loll pitched a complete game, only allowing 2 runs an picking off another runner at first. Final score, 8-2.

Thanks to Bob Zehentner for the Sophs score. This brings the Sophs season record to 17-4, and their district record to 8-1.

Per a Rank One update, the start time of this Thursday night's varsity game at Galveston Ball has been changed. First pitch will be at 6:00 PM. There are concerns about fog.

The Mustang bats finally came alive, and with the help of a huge second inning, defeated the Texas City Stingarees 7-3 on a warm and muggy night at Bobby Black field. Texas City struck first, plating 2 in the top of the second , but the Mustangs wasted no time in righting the ship. In their half of the second, Friendswood sent 12 batters to the plate, scoring 7 runs on 6 hits! It was an epic inning, the likes of which has not been seen this season.

Christian Dao started it off with a sharp single to center, and took second on a ground single through the hole between short and third by Jayson McKinley. Jared Gaspard followed with a "swinging bunt" on a hit and run, and beat everyone to the bag for an infield hit, and bases loaded with no outs. Will Hibbs worked an RBI walk, and Nick Treybig took one for the team for an RBI hit-by-pitch. T.J. Scott stepped in and laced a 2-RBI opposite field single to left, leaving runners at first and second with no outs. Johnnie LeBlanc laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt to move up the runners, and bring Brent Janak to the plate. Janak delivered, ripping a 2-RBI double to the wall in left center field. Janak reached 3rd on a wild pitch, and then Jordan Wood's ground out to third scored our 7th run of the inning. With 2 out and the bases finally clear of Mustangs, Dao tried to start it up again by working a base on balls. McKinley followed up with his 2nd hit of the inning, but both died on base when Gaspard got jambed on an inside pitch, flying out to left field. Wow! What an inning!!

Texas City never recovered, managing one more run in the 4th, but seeing "mini-rallys" come to naught in the 5th and 6th innings due primarily to carbon copy double plays with Jordan Wood grabbing a grounder, stepping on second, and firing to first base.

Offensively, the Mustangs were out hit 10-8 by the Stingarees, but got the hits when we needed them. Offensive standouts for the night were Brent Janak, going 2 for 4 with a single and a double and 2 RBIs, and Christian Dao, going 2 for 2 with 2 singles. Scott's big hit garnered 2 RBIs, and was the straw that truly broke the Stingarees back.

Starter Jairus Alexander showed a tremendous work ethic and got the win as he battled the Stingarees for 4 tough innings without his best stuff. He scattered 8 hits over those 4 innings, allowing 3 runs while striking out 5 and walking 2. Jayson McKinley came in to pitch the last 3 innings, giving up 2 hits and walking 3, but allowing no runs.

A tight district race only got tighter with this night's games, with losses by Texas City and Dawson creating a log jamb of teams at 5-4, including your home town Mustangs. Santa Fe plays Galveston Ball Wednesday night, and a Tribe victory will create a 4 way tie for third place, with all 4 teams only a 1/2 game out of second. Fasten your seat belts fans! It's going to be an interesting second half!!

The Mustangs sent 8 men to the plate in the first, 9 in the third, 7 in the fourth, and 8 in the fifth, scoring 3, 3, 2, and 3 runs respectively. Garret Cragin pitched a 1-hit complete game shutout for an 11-0 win.

The Mustang Sophomores continued their winning ways with their second win of the season over Texas City on Tuesday night at Robinson Field.

Evan MacDonald had the Texas City batters off balance all night hurling a complete game. E-Mac struck out seven Stingarees and spread four hits over six innings.

The Sophs scored in all but one inning getting things going early with 2 runs in the top of the 1^st.Colin Wright walked, stole second, and scored on Tucker Oliver’s single to Right Field. Kyle Smith drove in Oliver with a base hit to center. The Mustangs added a run in the 2^nd with a Jesse Brewster single followed by three walks.

Two additional runs came across in the third. Travis LeBlanc reached on an error followed by a walk to Colin Rickard. One run scored with a bad throw to first on an Alex Valdez ground ball. Colin Wright drove in a second run with hard hit ground ball to second.

Tucker Oliver opened the 4^th with a walk followed by a Kyle Smith single. Travis LeBlanc bunted them over to 2^nd and 3^rd with a walk to Colin Rickard loading the bases and setting up an Alex Valdez sacrifice fly to Center. Jesse Brewster batted in a second run.

The Mustangs added two runs in the 5^th to reach the final 9 to 2 tally with Wright and Smith singles followed by walks to Travis LeBlanc, Colin Rickard, and Clayton Stanford.

Per a Rank One update, the start time of tonight's varsity game vs. Texas City has been changed. First pitch will be at 6:00 PM. There are concerns about rain.

In what amounted to a "must win" game for the Mustangs, the Hometown Nine came through with a victory over the visiting Ridge Point Panthers today 3-2. It was about time we came out on the top side of a one run game for a change!

Friendswood struck first, manufacturing a run in the bottom of the 1st. T.J. Scott reached on an E5, advanced to 2nd on a walk to Brent Janak, stole 3rd, and scored on an RBI sacrifice fly to deep center off the bat of Jordan Wood. The score remained 1-0 Good Guys through the top of the 4th, and then the Stangs struck again. Scott worked a lead-off walk, and was sacrificed to 2nd by Johnnie LeBlanc. Janak singled him to 3rd, where Wood promptly drove him in with an RBI single through the hole into left field.

The Panthers, who had been completely shut down by Wood to that point, finally got on the board in the top of the 6th. Wood struck out the lead off batter, then walked the Panther's pinch hitter Lee. Wood then added another notch to his strike out belt, retiring Ridge Point's next hitter for the 2nd out. The Panther's two-hole hitter worked a full count, then slapped a single to right center. With two men on, the next Panther hit an opposite field liner that just eluded a diving Gunnar Hollier and went to the wall for a 2-run double. Wood struck out the next batter for the 3rd out, completing the 6th inning K-trifecta.

Now tied 2-2, the Mustangs went to the bottom of the 6th needing to make something happen. The fans didn't have to wait long, as Jayson McKinley greeted the new Panther pitcher rudely. Big Mac took a 2-2 change-up out of the park, with a tape measure home run deep over the left field wall for what proved to be the game winning run. The Ridge Point hurler settled in after that to retire the next 3 Mustangs to end the 6th.

Will Hibbs came on in the 7th to try to shut down the Panthers and preserve the victory. The 1st batter was struck out on 3 pitches, and the 2nd hitter lined out to short on a nice play by Wood. A walk to the 3rd batter, followed by an infield single, gave the hometown faithful some concern, but the final batter for Ridge Point pushed a weak grounder to 2nd for a 4-3 out and a Mustang victory.

Though the Mustangs could only muster 3 hits, they made them count. Janak had a single that moved a runner to scoring position, and then Wood singled him home. The third hit was huge, as McKinley put us in the lead for good with the 6th inning bomb.

Winning pitcher Jordan Wood hurled a great game, taking a no-hitter into the 6th inning. He ended up allowing 2 runs on 2 hits, and struck out 8 while walking only 1. Hibbs got the save, allowing 1 hit, walking 1 and striking out 1.

The win evens both the season record (10-10) and the district record (4-4), and puts the Mustangs back into the race for a play-off spot in tough district 24-4A. Next week is crucial for the Stangs, as they host the Texas City Stingarees on Tuesday at Bobby Black Field, and travel to the island for a rare Thursday night game against the Galveston Ball Tors.

Friendswood sent 7 men to the plate in the 1st inning, but only managed a single run. The 2nd inning saw the Stangs put up a crooked number, scoring 4 big runs even though they gave up 2 outs to perhaps overly-aggressive base running! Though the bats suddenly went cold, the Mustangs had all the runs they needed, as Makransky hurled 6 innings of 1 run ball. Tinger climbed the hill to clean up the 7th, and preserve the 5-1 win. Great job guys!

The Mustang Sophomore team handed Ridge Point a 3-0 loss in district play at Ridge Point on Saturday. Andrew Kolodziej had his breaking stuff working as he spread four hits over seven scoreless innings for the first complete seven-inning game hurled this season. The Mustangs scored two in the first inning with a Tucker Oliver double over the right fielder's head scoring Andrew Zehentner from first. Kyle Smith singled to right to score Oliver. The Mustangs added an insurance run in the top of the 7th with a single by Evan MacDonald who went to third on a Zehentner line drive single to right center. MacDonald was brought home on a ground ball with Ridge Point failing to roll the double play. Kyle Smith and Evan MacDonald collected two hits each for the Mustangs who tallied seven hits total.

The win raises the Soph's record to 6-1 in district and 15-4 overall. The Mustang Sophomores play two district games this week, traveling to Texas City on Tuesday night, and hosting Galveston Ball on Thursday. Both teams are Mustang run-rule victims from earlier this season.

The Varsity game vs. Ridge Point has been canceled for today, and will be played at 2 PM, Saturday, March 31st, at Bobby Black Field on the FHS Campus.

The J.V. and Sophomore games against Ridge Point have been cancelled for today, and rescheduled to be played tomorrow, Saturday, March 31st. The Sophomore game is set for Noon, followed by the J.V. game at 2:30 PM. Both games will be played at Ridge Point High School

The Friendswood Varsity loses another one run game on the road Monday night, as the St. Pius X Panthers continue what has become a tradition of last inning victories over the Mustangs. A walk-off RBI single by pinch hitter Brian Newman lifted the Panthers to the victory in the home half of the 7th inning, eerily reminiscent of the final inning 2-1 win for the Panthers from last season.

The Friendswood Nine jumped out to an early lead, scoring 2 runs in the top of the 2nd courtesy of a couple of Mustang hits and 3 big Panther fielding errors. In the inning, Jairus Alexander and Omar Martinez collected singles, while Walker Williams, Karson DuPriest and Joe Taylor all put the ball in play leading to the Panther miscues.

St. Pius came back in the 3rd, knotting the score at 2, as a lead off walk and 3 singles interspersed with strike outs pushed across the runs. The Panthers added a single run in the 4th on a walk, stolen base and timely single. Friendswood came back in the top of the 6th to tie the score. With one out, Joe Kalla drilled a double to the wall in left center field, moved to third on a single by Walker Williams, and scored on a wild pitch.

The score remained 3-3 as a St. Pius threat in the bottom of the 6th was snuffed out. The Mustangs tried to get something going in the top of the 7th, as Nick Treybig smacked a one out single, but was left at first base as the next two hitters succumbed to the hard throwing Panther sidewinder. St Pius sent us all home unhappy in the bottom of the inning, as their lead off hitter doubled to left, and one batter later, Newman stroked the game winner.

Pitching by committee was the game plan for Friendswood for this non-district tilt. Joe Taylor started on the bump for the Mustangs, and threw two scoreless innings allowing only one hit, and pulling a real Houdini act in the first, escaping a bases loaded no outs jamb. Jairus Alexander took the hill for the next two innings, and allowed 3 runs on 4 hits, striking out 3 Panthers. Will Hibbs pitched the 5th, facing three batters and recording two K's, and Jayson McKinley took the 6th and 7th, allowing 2 hits and 1 run, and getting hung with the tough luck loss. All the hurlers threw well, but were facing a strong Panther team, 14-2 on the season, and one of the favorites to go to state in TAPPS this season.

The Stangs are idle in district play tonight, but will watch with interest the outcome of the Santa Fe vs. Ridge Point game which pits the two teams currently tied for first place in the district. In other games, Dawson take on La Marque, and Manvel tussles with Texas City. Next up for Friendswood will be the first ever meeting with Ridge Point at Bobby Black Field Friday night, March 30th at 7 PM. We need a victory to finish the first half of district playing .500 ball!

Despite outhitting Ft. Bend Austin 7-6, the Mustangs lost 10-2 on Saturday, 3/24, in a non-district game. The Mustangs were up 2 - 1 going into the sixth inning, but gave up five runs in the sixth and four additional runs in the top half of the 7th. Trent Weatherly and Matthew MacDonald spread five hits over six innings, but the Mustang defense committed four errors through the first six.

The Mustangs beat Fort Bend Austin today, but they didn't make it easy. The game started by giving up a run in the first, but batting 10 men in the home half made it a 6-1 lead. Schimming and Farrington struggled today on the mound giving up 8 runs over the next two innings. A seven run fourth put the Mustangs ahead 13-10. Barba gave up two runs over his first three innings before Fort Bend loaded the bases in the 7th. In came Loll, who threw to first on one of his patented pick-off moves, but the ball got away from the first baseman, scoring 2 to tie the game at 13. An error and a ground out put Fort Bend up 14-13. The Mustangs loaded the bases with one out, and a short fly to right could not score the runner. With two outs, Makransky got a seeing eye single to right to score the tying run. Cragin then got a grounder through to right to win the game, 15-14. Friendswood out hit them 21 - 6, but 6 errors and a ton of walks made the game close.

The Mustangs jumped all over Santa Fe's first pitcher, sending 11 men to the plate in the 1st inning and scoring 6 runs. good thing, because they never scored again. Makransky pitched 4 innings of one run ball, and Tinger finished the last 3 innings to end the 6-1 win.

In a pitchers' duel Friday night, the Mustangs lose yet another one run game, falling to the Indians 2-1. The game was marred by many errors, with the Mustangs making 3, Santa Fe making 2, and the umpires making one big one that led to the winning run for the Indians.

The game was scoreless through 2 innings, but the Indians broke through in the bottom of the 3rd, plating a single unearned run. A lead off walk, combined with two Mustang errors, gave Santa Fe the lead. Again in the 5th inning, a Mustang error put the lead off Indian on base, and the next batter singled to left to put runners on 1st and 2nd with no outs. The clean up hitter for the Indians then ripped a line drive towards right field for what appeared to be a clean hit off the bat, but the first baseman for the Mustangs leapt high in the air to snag the line drive for an out, and beat the runner back to the bag by a step for a double play. Wait...........what?!? The field umpire calls the runner safe?!?!? An appeal to the plate umpire falls on deaf ears, as he refuses to overturn the obvious mistake. The Santa Fe fans in the stands, their first base coach and anyone with reasonable vision were astounded by the call! When everything settles down a bit, the next batter works a walk, loading the bases. A big strike out gets the next Indian for out number 2 (which should have been out number 3 and "inning over"). The "gift" batter for the Indians singles to right field, scoring what proved to be the winning run, but the runner trying to score from 2nd was hosed on a great throw from right fielder Jared Gaspard and a super tag by our pugnacious catcher Nick Treybig.

The Mustangs finally got on the board in the top of the 6th, as Santa Fe's defense had a couple of hiccups. Lead off batter Johnnie LeBlanc fisted a flare to right field that was misplayed by the Indian fielder. Later, with one out, Heisyan Forero grounded to third, but the Indian third sacker threw the ball into right field as he tried to start the double play with a throw to the keystone sack. LeBlanc scampered to third, and Forero held at first. Brent Janak then claimed the Mustang's only RBI on a slow roller ground out to the short stop, scoring LeBlanc. Forero was left languishing at 2nd when the 3rd out was made on a ground out third to first.

In the top of the 7th, trailing 2-1, the Mustangs were in a do or die situation. After two strike outs, the Mustangs were down to their last out, when Jairus Alexander stepped in to pinch hit. Working the count full, Alexander connected with the next pitch, ripping a line drive to the fence in left center for a double. Unfortunately, visions of a last inning comeback died as the baseball settled into the Indian's first baseman's mitt on a pop foul off the bat of the next batter.

Jordan Wood is somewhat snake-bitten thus far this season on the mound. He turned in yet another excellent performance, but got tagged with the loss. Wood worked 4 innings, allowing no earned runs, striking out 8 Indians, while issuing 2 free passes and scattering 5 hits. Jayson McKinley turned in another stellar relief stint, coming in to throw the last two innings, striking out 4 and walking one, and allowing just 1 hit. Dylan Ebbs threw a complete game for the Indians, striking out 7 Mustangs, walking only one, and allowing just two hits. TJ Scott turned a bloop single into a double with aggressive base running in the 3rd inning, and Jairus Alexander's aforementioned ringing double in the 7th provided the only Mustang hitting highlights. Without better hitting and fewer fielding miscues, the Mustangs will find it difficult to dig out of the hole they have put themselves in so far. But, we have a chance to end the first half of district 4-4 with a win over Ridge Point. In volatile District 24-4A, anything can happen. If we can get on a roll, we can still find a way to compete for a ticket to the post season!

This loss evens the Mustangs season record at 9-9, but puts us in the bottom half of the district standing at 3-4. We finish the first half of the district season hosting surprisingly tough Ridge Point next Friday. Before that, we will travel to St. Pius for a non-district tilt on Monday, March 26th. Game time is 7:00 PM.

Sophomore Update: Sophs mangle Manvel, but lose a close game to the Indians, running their excellent season record to 14 - 3 and 5 - 1 in district competition.

Both the Sophomore and J.V. teams will play Ft. Bend Austin High School tomorrow, Saturday, March 24th at Bobby Black Field on the campus of Friendswood High School. The Sophs play at high noon, while the JV game starts at 3:00 PM. Come out and get some sun while cheering on the Friendswood Nines!!

On an absolutely gorgeous evening for baseball, the Mustangs took care of business securing a much needed district victory over the Manvel Mavericks by a score of 5 - 2. Friendswood jumped out early, manufacturing a run in their half of the 1st inning. A lead off walk to T.J. Scott got things rolling, a muffed pick-off attempt put him on second, and Jordan Wood's slow roller to short moved Scott to 3rd base. The speedy Scott scored standing on a wild pitch, and the Mustangs took the 1-0 lead.

Manvel came back in their half of the 2nd to tie the score on a lead off home run over the left field wall by their power hitting clean up batter Trey Silvers. The tie held until the bottom of the 4th, when the Stangs pushed across 2 big runs. Gunnar Hollier lead off the inning and was hit by a pitch. Will Hibbs hit a grounder in the hole between 1st and 2nd which was nabbed by the 2nd baseman, who in an attempt to cut down Hollier at 2nd, made an errant throw into left field. Hollier advanced to 3rd, and Hibbs ended up on 2nd base, with no outs in the inning. Next up Jason McKinley fought off an inside fastball, muscling the ball into shallow left field for a 2-RBI single, with Hollier scoring from 3rd, and Hibbs sliding into the plate just ahead of the throw and a few feet behind Hollier. Mustangs 3 - Mavericks 1.

Friendswood added single runs in the 5th and 6th innings. In the 5th, Scott was hit by a pitch, took second on a wild pitch, and third on a bunt single by Wood. He would then score on an RBI ground out by Christian Dao. In the 6th, with one out, Jared Gaspard laced a line drive shot to the wall in the right center power alley, and beat the throw into 3rd for a triple. He was plated by the next batter, as pinch hitter Walker Williams burned the right fielder with a line drive over his head to the wall for an RBI double. Manvel added a run to their total in the 6th, as Friendswood elected to trade a run for an out with the comfortable lead.

On the mound for the Mustangs, Jairus Alexander got the win, twirling a 3 hit gem, striking out 8 Mavericks, while issuing only one BB and one HBP. Alexander was extremely efficient, needing only 76 pitches to complete his 6 innings of work, and was named the Texas Sports Radio Network MVP of the game for his efforts. Will Hibbs came on to close in the 7th, facing only 3 batters, and striking out the final two Mavericks to get the save and secure the win for the Mustangs.

Next up for the Stangs is district nemesis Santa Fe on Friday night (03/23/12) at Santa Fe (7:00 PM first pitch). District 24-4A is living up to its reputation, as currently Santa Fe, Ridge Point and Texas City are sporting 4-1 records and sit atop the standings, while Friendswood and Dawson are deadlocked at 3-3 just behind. With a victory over the Indians, Friendswood can get right back into the hunt in one of the toughest district in the state of Texas.

Despite a complete game, 10 K effort by Dawson ace Travis Duke, the Eagles fell to the Tors as pro prospect Billy Williams stole home for the only run in the game.

The St. Pius game originally scheduled for Tuesday, March 27th has been rescheduled for Monday, March 26th. Game time is still 7:00 PM.

Not too much went right for the JV yesterday, as they suffered their first district defeat at the hands (and bats) of the Manvel Mavericks. Manvel scored in every inning except the 5th, while the Maverick moundsmen scattered 6 hits over the 7 Mustang innings.

The Varsity game with Manvel has been rescheduled for tomorrow, Thursday, March 22 at 7:00 PM at Bobby Black Field.

The JV and Soph games have been rescheduled for today, Wednesday, March 21 to be played at Manvel High School - JV at 4:30 PM and Sophs at 7:00 PM

Please watch this website and your e-mail inbox for alerts as to dates and times of rescheduled games.

Please note revisions to the Sophomore write-up below. My apologies for the inaccuracies in the original story.

A frustrating night at the plate ultimately led to the Mustangs dropping their 3rd district game, falling to the Clear Falls Knights 2-1 in extra innings. Frustrating because we hit the ball...........very hard..........many times! Line drive after line drive after deep fly ball after hard grounder went unerringly and directly to the Clear Falls fielders. The good news was that the Knights were having just as many problems as we were in scoring, as Jordan Wood went on a "K fest" and handcuffed the Falls hitters. Wood fanned 7 in his 4 innings of work.

Tied 0-0 going into the bottom of the 3rd, the Knights finally managed to scratch out a run combining a walk with a couple of base hits. The score remained 1-0 Knights until the top of the 5th when the Mustangs finally got on the board with a lead off home run to dead center field by Will Hibbs. Hibbs came in to relieve Wood in the 5th inning, and held the Knights scoreless for the next 3 innings. We mounted a significant threat in the 6th, getting runners to second and third with two outs, but got caught rounding the bag too far at third and the rally died. Again in the 7th, we had men at 2nd and 3rd with only 1 out as a HBP and BB was followed by a SAC bunt. The next two Mustang hitters fell victim to the Clear Falls reliever, and again we leave men in scoring position in the later innings of the game.

In the top half of the 8th, a lead off single by T.J. Scott looked promising, especially as he took second base when the center fielder bobbled the ball. Unfortunately, the Knights hurler took care of the next three batters, stranding Scott at 2nd. The home half of the 8th started badly for the Mustangs, as a lead off walk was followed by a mishandled sacrifice bunt, placing two Knights on the base paths. An intentional walk to the next batter loaded the bases. The next hitter was retired for the first out of the inning on a hot line drive back to the pitcher, but the clean up hitter steered a slow grounder through the right side of the drawn in infield to plate the winning run.

Wood pitched well over 4 innings, striking out 7 Knights, and giving up 4 hits and 1 run. Hibbs worked 3 1/3 innings, striking out 3, and giving up 2 hits and 1 run. At the plate, as mentioned above, almost every Mustang hit the ball hard at least once, but we were only able to muster 6 hits. T.J. Scott and Jared Gaspard managed singles, while Brent Janak, Christian Dao and Jayson McKinley all had doubles, and Hibbs had the home run.

A tough loss, and as it turns out, at a tough time, as district leader Dawson fell to Texas City tonight. A Mustang win would have put us right back into the thick of the district race. Instead, we are looking at a tough road to claw back into contention. The good news is that we still have 11 district games remaining, and if we can get the bats hot at the right time, we can do this thing!

The Mustangs scored 2 runs without getting a hit, and that lead held up through 5 innings as starting pitcher Kelby Schimming fashioned a 3-hit shutout through the 5th. Unfortunately, they were playing 7, and the 6th proved tough for the Stangs. Some fielding errors and a controversial balk call put Clear Falls up 3-2, and the Mustangs came in for their last bats in the 7th trailing by a run. A timely double, after a walk and a stolen base, plated the tying run, and the Stangs were in business. Two walks followed the double, and the bases were full of Mustangs with only 1 out in the bottom of the 7th, and things were looking good. The rally fell short, as the Knights were able to get the next two outs without allowing the runners to advance, and the game ended in a tie score. I guess the osculation of your female sibling is better than a loss, but I know the lads would rather have had the W!

The Mustangs battled not only a good Clear Falls squad, but themselves as well, as they carded 3 errors (most in one game this season). The Stangs outhit the Knights 3 to 2, and managed to hang on for the win. Evan MacDonald got the nod as the starting pitcher, and put in a strong performance hurling five hitless innings. Eric Spong came in to mop up, and though the Knights pushed across 2 unearned runs, the Good Guys prevailed! Keep it rolling Sophs!!

The mighty Mustang Sophs run-ruled the Dawson Eagles Thursday afternoon by a score of 11 - 1. Alex Valdez got the start for the Stangs, and pitched 4 strong innings, giving up only one base knock. Trent Weatherly came in to close out the fifth, and it was all over! The Mustangs pounded out 9 hits to Dawson's 1, and poured on the steam in the 2nd and 3rd innings, scoring 4 and 6 runs respectively. Colin Wright let the offensive charge for the Stangs with three hits, while Tucker Oliver and Andrew Zehentner each collected two.

This runs their season record to 12 - 2, and a perfect 3 - 0 in district competition. Awesome!

The Mustang JV remained perfect in district play by defeating the Dawson Eagles 7 - 2 Thursday evening at Bobby Black Field. The Stangs, now 3 - 0 and in first place, used a complete game from pitcher Anthony Makransky to eclipse the Eagles, putting up crooked numbers in their half of the 1st, 4th and 5th innings. Way to go guys! Keep it rolling!!

The only scare for the Mustangs Wednesday night was a brief rain shower that caused momentary concern that we might have to "do this all over again" because of a rain-out. Luckily, the shower moved on, and so did the Stangs as they run-ruled a game but woefully over-matched Cougar team.

Joe Taylor got the W for the Mustangs on the mound, with Brent Janak mopping up the last 2 innings, while 11 Friendswood batters collected 15 hits in 3 innings. Those with multiple hits included a 2 for 2 night for Gunnar Hollier with 2 singles, a 2 for 3 night for Jairus Alexander with 2 singles, and a 3 for 3 night for Will Hibbs including a 3 run HR.

The Mustangs travel to Clear Falls Friday night and hope to knock off the Knights. Game time 7 PM at Clear Falls.

Santa Fe 6 - Clear Falls 0 - Dylan Ebbs threw a complete game, 2-hit shut out, with 12 K's

Ridge Point 2 - Dawson 1 - Winning Pitcher - Cook; game winning RBI single - Bruning

Texas City 8 - Galveston Ball 5 - Winning Pitcher Brady McClain; HR Hinson for TC & Hernandez for Ball

With the help of a huge third inning, where the Stangs sent 12 men to the dish and plated 8 big runs, the JV upended Furr 13-3. Furr managed their 3 runs without a single hit, as Crain and Tinger combined to hurl a no-hitter!

JV and Sophomore games that had been rescheduled for today have been postponed until Thursday, March 15 at the same times. Both Squads will play Dawson at home on Thursday: Sophomores at 4:30 PM; JV at 7 PM.

The Mustangs ran into a buzz saw Tuesday night by the name of Travis Duke. Duke pitched a complete game, 2 hit shut out, striking out 11 while walking 2 and allowing only 2 hits. The game started and ended with a called third strike, placing book ends on a 97 pitch gem by the big southpaw who has committed to hurl for the University of Texas next year.

Dawson tallied their only runs in the second inning. A fielding error put the first Eagle on the base paths, and the next four hitters reached safely on a double and three consecutive singles. When the dust cleared, Dawson had 3 runs on the board. That turned out to be 2 more than they really needed, as the Mustang bats were ominously silent all evening. With the exception of an infield hit beat out by the fleet-footed T.J. Scott, and a ringing double pulled down the third base line by Gunnar Hollier, the Stangs connected rarely. The ball never left the infield off the Mustang bats until the 5th inning, where 2 of the 3 outs were fly balls to left and center field. Scott's hit came in the 6th, and Hollier's in the 7th, but both were left languishing on the basepaths.

With the exception of the noted big 2nd inning, the Mustang moundsmen kept the Eagles quiet. Jordan Wood started and was tagged with the loss, going two innings before swapping places with starting 3rd sacker Jayson McKinley. Big Mac finished the game, allowing only 2 more hits and no runs over his 4 innings of work, while fanning 6 Eagles.

The Mustangs host a struggling La Marque nine Wednesday evening, March 13th at Bobby Black Field. Then the Stangs travel to take on the Clear Falls Knights at their field on Friday evening, March 15th. 7:00 PM first pitch for both games. The Mustangs need two wins to get back into the top half of the district standings.

All baseball games for today are cancelled due to wet field conditions. As of now, all games are rescheduled to be played tomorrow (Tuesday, March 12th) at the same originally scheduled times. Please watch this website and your e-mail for further updates.

"The Super Sophs continued their winning ways by beating host Santa Fe 10-0 in the second round of the Sante Fe Sophomore Tournament. Sante Fe had previously beaten Pearland in the round of 8. The Mustangs blew the game open with a 8-run third inning fueled by 3 hits and 5 errors in the cold and rainy semi-final. Andrew Kolodziej threw four shutout innings before the umpires cleared the field after a nearby lightening strike, ending the game.

The Varsity used two big innings to score the runs needed to subdue a tough Montgomery Bears team 8-6 in the second round of the Alvin tourney Friday morning. Facing a sustained, cold north wind blowing in and across from left field, the Stangs jumped all over the Bear's starting pitcher in the top of the 1st. Following back to back walks to Brent Janak and Jordy Wood, Christian Dao blasted a 2 RBI drive to deep right field over the head of the Bear's outfielder, plating Janak and Wood with the first two runs of the game. Gunnar Hollier then switched places with Dao on the strength of a shot to right that rode the air currents almost to the fence for an RBI double! Hollier was driven in on an RBI single to right by Jairus Alexander, and suddenly we were up 4-0!

The Mustangs repeated the 4 run outburst in the 4th. Alexander lead off with a swinging bunt single, followed by a walk to Johnnie LeBlanc. T.J. Scott sliced an RBI double to left into the teeth of the wind, scoring Varner (pinch running for Alexander), and moving LeBlanc to third. Brent Janak smoked a 2 RBI double to right, plating both LeBlanc and Scott. Wood moved Janak to third on a ground out to first base, and then Dao continued his hot streak with an RBI line drive single to left driving in Janak for the 4th run of the frame.

The Mustangs managed 8 runs on 8 hits, with Jairus Alexander going 2 for 2, Brent Janak and Christian Dao went 2 for 3, and both TJ Scott and Gunnar Hollier picking up a double each. Keep those BBCORs popping gang!!!

On the mound, Jairus Alexander and Jayson McKinley combined to hold down the Bears, with Alexander handling the first three innings and getting the win. He struck out 6, and gave up 3 hits and 3 runs. McKinley took care of innings 4 - 6, striking our 4 more Bears and allowing 4 hits and 3 runs.

Unfortunately, the rain we had been dodging all day caught up with us at Nolan Ryan Field as we were preparing to do battle with the Pearland Oilers in game three of the tourney. After a 30 minute lightening delay, the officials determined that the rain would be on us momentarily, and canceled the game. Boy, were they ever right! We all traveled back to Friendswood through a driving rain storm that didn't let up for over an hour! It is my understanding that the game against Dulles tomorrow has been canceled as well. If anything changes, we will note it here on the website and send out a mass e-mail.

In the opening round of the Santa Fe Tournament, the Mustang Sophs whipped Angleton 10 - 2. Erik Spong pitched a complete game! That runs the Sophs record to 10-2 for the season, while they maintain their perfect 2-0 record in district play.

The Mustangs evened their season record at 6 - 6 with a convincing victory over Ft. Bend Austin in the first game of the Alvin Yellowjacket Tournament. The wind was gusting at Dolphin Field on the campus of Alvin Community College, and that might have contributed to a rather messy defensive effort by both teams. The Mustangs made 5 errors in the 7 inning game, while Austin made 3.

Offensive highlights included singles by Aaron Miller, Jordy Wood and Brent Janak, and an RBI double by Walker Williams that plated 2 runs. Janak and Jason McKinley also had RBI SAC flys.

Pitching in this game was handled "by commitee", with Joe Taylor getting the start and working 2 innings, followed by Will Hibbs for 2 innings, then Jayson McKinley threw an inning, and Jairus Alexander finished innings 6 & 7. Austin was limited to 2 hits, 1 each off Taylor and Hibbs, and they scored only the one run which was unearned.

Weather permitting, the Varsity plays Montgomery on Friday at 10 AM at Manvel H.S., followed by a game against Pearland at 3 PM at Alvin H.S.

The Mustang JV used two huge innings to plaster Pasadena, winning the opening game of the tournament by a score of 13-4. The Stangs "batted around" in both the 3rd and 4th inning, totaling 9 runs in those two innings alone. Great job guys!!

On a night where it seemed the Mustangs could do very little right defensively, they somehow found a way to battle back and steal a game from the Ball High Tors by scoring 2 runs in the bottom of the 7th inning. The Stangs overcame six errors in route to the victory, which squared up their district record at 1 - 1. The Tors were far from perfect, as they committed 3 errors in the game as well.

Tied 1-1 going into the bottom of the 4th, the Mustangs pushed across 3 big runs. Back to back walks to Will Hibbs and Christian Dao started the 4th, and both advanced on a passed ball. Hibbs scored on Gunnar Hollier's slow roller fielded by the pitcher, sliding in under the tag on a close play at the plate. Jason McKinley stepped in and slashed a line drive single to left, scoring Dao, and Hollier came around to score later on Aaron Miller's grounder to short.

Things looked good going into the top of the 5th, with the Stangs up 4-1. Jordan Wood, the starting pitcher for the Mustangs, had overcome all the errors and was pitching a great game, having given up only one hit, while striking out 5 Tors through the first four innings. The 5th got off to a rough start with another error allowing the lead off hitter to reach base, bringing the top of the line up to the plate. A fielder's choice cut down the lead runner for the first out, but a walk to the next hitter, combined with an intentional pass to Billy Williams loaded the bases. Wood had reached his pitch count limit, and work horse Jairus Alexander came on with the bases loaded and only one out to try and stem the tide. The Tors clean up hitter picked that time to steer a grounder through the hole between third and short to plate two runs, and a third run scored on a ground out by the next batter. With two down, another Friendswood error allowed the 4th run of the inning to score. Alexander struck out the next hitter on three pitches to retire the side.

Now trailing 5-4, the Mustangs were held scoreless in their half of the 5th and 6th. Will Hibbs came in to pitch for the Stangs and retired the Tors in order in the 6th and 7th, striking out 4 of the 6 batters he faced. Trailing by one run, the Mustangs came in for last bats. Lead off hitter Jared Gaspard worked the count to 2-2, then slapped a single right back through the box to get things moving for the Friendswood Nine. Aaron Miller pushed a great bunt up the first base line and scampered to first without a throw. T.J. Scott laid a beautiful bunt down the 3rd base line, and a hurried throw by the Tor fielder got away from the first baseman, loading the bases with Mustangs. Brent Janak stepped in, and the first pitch by the Tors new reliever grazed his arm, forcing in the tieing run. With the bases still juiced, Jordy Wood fouled off a couple of pitches, then "took one for the team", getting popped in the back with a fastball for a walk-off plunking to force in the winning run.

It wasn't pretty, but any win in tough district 24-4A is something about which to be excited! Next up for the Varsity is the Alvin Invitational Tournament the end of this week, followed by three big district tilts during the week of spring break: at Dawson on Monday 3/12; home for La Marque on Wednesday 3/14; and at Clear Falls on Friday 3/16.

Ridge Point 4 - Texas City 3 - Winning Pitcher - JT Jakubik - Losing Pitcher - Riley Cooper

Dawson 3 - Santa Fe 0 - Winning Pitcher - T. Duke (complete game, 1 hit, 14 Ks) - Losing Pitcher - D. Ebbs

The J.V. downed Galveston Ball last night 9 - 4 to remain undefeated in district competition. Next up for the J.V. will be the Pasadena ISD J.V. tournament.

The Mustang Sophomores ran their district record to 2 - 0 Monday night with a 16 - 0 shellacking of the Galveston Ball Tors on the island. The Stangs pounded out 13 hits, while pitchers Josh Crain and Ryan Dupuis held the Tors to just one base knock all night. The victory brings the Sophs season record to a sparkling 9 - 2. Keep it rolling guys!!

All games originally scheduled for Tuesday, March 6th have been moved to Monday, March 5th due to the TAKS testing.

The Mustang Sophs made it to the championship game despite losing their opening round game to Clear Brook. The Stangs battled back, with victories over Dobie 11-4 and host Brazoswood by the same score of 11-4, and then shellacked St. Pius Saturday afternoon 21 - 3. Colin Rickard and Andrew Zehentner combined to hurl 5 hitless innings in the victory over St. Pius.

The run differential was enough to put the Stangs in the final, where they faced a tough Alvin team. The third inning proved to be a real stunbing block, as Friendswood gave up 9 runs to the Yellowjackets, and ended up losing the game 13-3.

The Mustangs made it three victories in a row, as they took care of business in Saturday's game against Clear Lake. With the bats tuning up, the Varsity seems to be catching their stride just at the right time!

The Mustangs jumped out to an early lead and never looked back, downing the Clear Lake Falcons 6-3 in the final CCISD Tournament game Saturday morning. In the top of the first, T.J. Scott drew a lead off walk, followed by Brent Janak's single through the right side of the infield. With runners on 1st and 2nd, Jordy Wood ripped an RBI single to left, scoring Scott with the first run of the game. Two batters later, Christian Dao blasted an 0-1 fastball into the teeth of the cold north wind, depositing the ball well beyond the left field fence for a 3 run bomb! The Stangs added single runs in the 4th and 5th to total 6 runs for the game.

The Mustang bats feasted on Falcon pitching, pounding out 10 hits, though some were certainly aided by the tricky wind at Falcon field. All the hits were singles other than the dinger by Dao. T.J. Scott went 2 for 4, as did Brent Janak and Christian Dao. Jordan Wood went 3 for 4 and Gunnar Hollier picked up one single.

Wood handled pitching duties in the 1st inning for the Mustangs, and then Aaron Miller reprised his role of "Super Reliever" from Friday night, coming in to pitch six strong innings and clip the Falcons wings! Showing masterful control of his curve ball, Miller limited Clear Lake to just 3 hits while striking out 7, including a big K for the final out of the game.

The Mustang JV fell to the Dawson Eagles by a score of 7-4 Friday in the final game of the Pearland Oiler Baseball JV tournament.

The Mustangs showed they could win with defense and small ball today, downing the Knights 1-0 in the third game of the CCISD Tournament. The Stangs pushed across the only run of the game for either squad in the second inning. Will Hibbs reached base on a lead off walk, then the Knight's pitcher hit Jason McKinley to put him aboard. With runners on first and second, Karson DuPriest laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt, moving Hibbs and McKinley up a base. Nick Treybig stepped in with one job to do, and he did it well, driving a deep fly ball to right center. Hibbs tagged up and scored after the catch, and that was all that we needed, as first Jairus Alexander, and then Johnnie LeBlanc blanked the Knights through 6 frames. Aaron Miller came in to clinch the victory retiring three batters in a row, two on strike outs! Alexander got the win, scattering 4 hits over his 4 innings of work, and striking out 4 Knights. LeBlanc held the Knights in check through 2 frames, and Miller came in and got the save.

Offensively, the Mustangs played "at'em ball". Numerous shots were ripped, but almost all were right at'em! T.J. Scott found his stroke today, going 2 for 3 with a double to the base of the center field wall, and a single line drive through the right side. Jayson McKinley also slashed a line shot through the hole into left field for a solid single.

The Mustang JV put it on the Manvel Mavericks today in the second game of the Pearland Oiler tournament by a score of 15-5. This is the second consecutive victory over district opponents notched by the JV in this tournament. Go Mustangs!!

The Mustangs lost a close one to a strong Pearland Oiler team in their CCISD Tourney opener . The Stangs took them to extra innings, before falling 3-2 in the 8th. The Oilers scored 1 in their half of the first, and the Mustangs tied it up in the top of the 3rd manufacturing a run on an infield hit by Jordy Wood, and a throwing error by the Oiler pitcher. Both teams would add a run in the 6th, with the Mustang tally coming on an RBI double from the bat of Gunnar Hollier, scoring Aaron Miller with the go ahead run. The home team Oilers tied it right back up in the bottom of the inning, and both teams were held scoreless in the 7th. The Mustangs mounted a threat in the 8th on a lead off single by Walker Williams, followed by a bunt base hit from Aaron Miller. Unfortunately, the Oilers retired the next 3 batters in order. The bottom of the 8th saw Pearland load the bases on a couple of singles and a walk, and with two outs, everyone thought the inning ended on a routine 1-3 put out. The umpire behind the plate saw it differently, as the Mustangs had to be brought back onto the field when the umpire said the ball hit the batters foot before going into fair territory, and was ruled as a foul ball. The very next pitch got away and plunked the Oiler batsman in the noggin, forcing in the winning run.

Tough loss, but aren't they all?? Bright spots for the Mustangs were the pitching of starter Joe Taylor, who went 5 1/3 innings scattering 5 Oiler singles and striking out 5, and the 7 hits recorded by the good guys (the most hits the Stangs have had in a single game thus far). Aaron Miller led the charge, going 2 for 3 with 2 singles, Walker Williams, Jordan Wood and Brent Janak chipped in singles, and both Christian Dao and Gunnar Hollier had doubles.

The Mustangs got a little sweet revenge in the nightcap, downing the Clear Springs Charges 6-3. The Chargers had whupped the Stangs 15-5 in the Pearland Tournament, so it was great to even the record against them. The Mustangs jumped out early, scoring 3 big runs in the top of the 1st on a single from Christian Dao, a walk, and a big RBI double by Walker Williams. The Chargers also aided with a couple of errors in the frame. Springs never recovered, trailing the entire game as the Stangs added a run in the 3rd on a single by Gunnar Hollier who was plated by an RBI single from Johnnie LeBlanc. We added insurance runs in the top of the 6th, as singles by Jordy Wood and Brent Janak, combined with 3 Charger errors, put a big 2 on the scoreboard. The Chargers managed a run in the second on a solo home run by Alex Ferriauollo, and single runs in the 4th and 5th innings.

Jayson McKinley started, and pitched a great 4 innings to get the win. "Big Mc" scattered 3 hits while striking out 5. Will Hibbs came in to pitch the 5th and 6th and got the save, giving up 2 hits while striking out 3 Chargers. For the second time in as many games, The Stangs bats delivered 7 hits! Jordan Wood went 2 for 4 with two singles, Christian Dao, Brent Janak, Gunnar Hollier and Johnnie LeBlanc added singles, and Walker Williams belted a double. Looks like the Mustangs' BBCORs are finally waking up!!!!!

The Mustang JV have had a successful week thus far! On Wednesday, the JV got their district season off to a great start by downing Texas City 9-5. In the opening round of the Pearland Oiler JV Tourney on Thursday, the Stangs defeated district foe Dawson by a score of 5-4.

JV parents, please let us know scores and details so we can post them here on the website. Thanks to Mike Fowler for the information noted above.

The Sophs suffered their first defeat of the season in the opening game of the tourney, falling to Clear Brook in the 7th inning by a score of 7-6. The baseball gods couldn't keep them down for long, as the Sophs rebounded in game two to plaster the Dobie Longhorns 11-4. Way to get it back on track guys!

The Mustangs Sophs continue their roll as they clobber the visiting Texas City Stings 11-1 in the district opener! Evan McDonald pitched a 5-inning complete game for the Stangs, scattering 5 Sting hits. Meanwhile, the Mustangs big bats pounded out 8 hits in route to their 11 runs. Keep it going!

The good guys took it on the chin last night down in Texas City. On a dank, foggy and windy evening that saw the dedication of the newly refurbished Texas City baseball park, junior southpaw Riley Cooper pitched a complete game 3 hit shut out against the Mustangs. Cooper used 109 pitches, the vast majority of which were curve balls, to completely baffle the Stangs, carding 15 K's over the seven innings. The crafty lefty gave up an early single to Jairus Alexander, as the Mustangs mounted a scoring threat in the first inning, and then two late singles in the final frame to Christian Dao and Jason McKinley. The game ended on two consecutive strike outs, leaving the bases full of Mustangs, and our hearts empty, as we started district competition off on an unexpectedly low note.

Overshadowed by the lackluster offensive performance was a fine pitching effort from Jordan Wood and Jairus Alexander. Wood handled the first three frames, allowing only one run on three hits. Alexander came in to continue the dominance, retiring the Stings with no hits and no runs for the next three innings. Unfortunately, one run was all that Texas City needed.

Next district game for the Mustangs will be next Tuesday, March 6th at Bobby Black Field, where the Stangs will try to even their district record by defeating the Galveston Ball Tors. Y'all come!

JV & Sophomore Games for Tuesday, February 28th have been postponed due to field conditions. The games have been rescheduled to be played at the same times on Wednesday, February 29th.

As of 11 AM, the Varsity game has not changed. Watch the website, and your e-mail, for potential changes as we move through the day.

A huge thank you to all the folks who came out to help with the field work today! We added a ton of product to the infield dirt and base paths, worked on the mound and the area around home plate, and reset the sprinklers. Thanks also to Mrs. Janak for the lunch!! CJ kept everyone going for a few more hours with that wonderful surprise!

The Mustang Sophs won the Pasadena ISD Tournament with an 11-5 victory over Brazoswood. Earlier in the tourney, the Stangs also beat Pasadena Memorial 12-2, and South Houston 18-1. That's what I call a wonderful display of power baseball! Keep it rolling guys!

That ran the Sophomore record to a sweet 4 - 0, as they had earlier disposed of Dobie by a score of 13-0. Outstanding!! The Sophomore Schedule / Results page has now been updated.

Day two of the tournament started off great for the Mustangs, as they took on the Clear Springs Chargers at 10 AM. Going in to the 3rd inning, the Stangs were up 5-3. The first inning saw a lead off triple off the center field wall by Jordan Wood, and doubles by Walker Williams and Aaron Miller leading to 3 runs. In the 2nd inning, a lead off double by Gunnar Hollier, a timely single by Brent Janak and a couple of free passes from the Chargers pitcher lead to 2 more big runs.

Unfortunately, things went south beginning in the 3rd inning, as the Mustangs allowed 7 runs on 4 hits, and simply never recovered. Final score after 5 complete innings was Clear Springs 15 - Friendswood 5. LeBlanc and McKinley chipped in singles late, and Hollier added one also, but it was not enough to stem the tide.

Game two, played at 7 PM Friday, pitted the Mustangs against a strong Alvin Yellowjackets nine. This game was a real pitchers duel through 6 innings, with the Mustangs taking the early lead 1 - 0 in the 1st on a double by Brent Janak, who was plated by an RBI single from Christian Dao. That lead held up, as the Stangs took the 1 - 0 advantage into the 7th. Then, the Yellowjackets tied it up with a two out solo home run over the left center wall by pinch hitter Craner.

Going in to extra innings, per tournament rules, a modified California tie-breaker system was utilized starting the inning with a runner at 2nd base and no outs. The wheels really fell off at that point for Friendswood, as Alvin proceeded to push across 7 big runs in their half of the 8th. The Mustangs managed to get a couple of runners on in the bottom of the 8th, but were unable to score, making it a final at Alvin 8 - Friendswood 1.

The first day of the tournament is in the books, and the Mustangs find themselves with a 1 - 1 record. The Stangs took it on the chin from Episcopal, falling on the short side of a 6 - 1 final score. Episcopal's strong southpaw and Rice University commit, Blake Fox, pitched a 3-hit complete game against the Mustangs. Our hits, all singles, were collected by Aaron Miller, Johnny LeBlanc, and Jordan Wood.

In a game marred by 6 errors, the Mustangs overcame their defensive difficulties to pull out a victory against district rival Clear Falls, defeating the Knights 7 - 6 on a walk off double off the left center field wall by Will Hibbs that plated Omar Martinez with the winning run in the bottom of the 7th. Other offensive highlights included Aaron Miller going 2 for 2 with two walks, Brent Janak with a big double to deep right center, and Christian Dao with a double to the wall in left center. The winning pitcher was Jared Gaspard, who came in and held the Knights in the 7th, retiring the side on two strike outs and a nubber back to the mound.

Per the Pearland Baseball Website, the games will be played at Pearland Veterans field at 4141 Bailey Rd. A map link is available on the "Directions" page.

One inning proved too much to overcome, as the Mustangs fell in their final pre-season tune-up to the Dobie Longhorns. The Stangs pitching staff shut down the Longhorns in 6 of the 7 frames, but gave up 3 runs in one inning. Meanwhile, the Dobie moundsman baffled the Stangs bats with breaking balls, hurling a complete game.

Next up for the Mustangs is the Pearland-Friendswood Tournament, marking the beginning of the 2012 campaign, with games at 10 AM and 7 PM Thursday, February 23rd and the same times on Friday, February 24th. Come on out and support your Friendswood Nine!

Schedule Change Notice

Due to unplayable field conditions, today's game versus Dobie has been canceled. The game has been rescheduled to be played tomorrow, Tuesday February 21st, following the Sophomore game which has been moved to our field and will be played at 4:00 PM. Varsity first pitch will be at 7:00 PM.

Unfortunately, badly needed rain decided to fall at the wrong time! Our final scrimmages, against Dickinson and La Porte, were rained out. Our first real game of the year will be Monday afternoon at 4 PM at Bobby Black Field. Let's get the season off to a good start by downing Dobie!

The good guys hung on to "win" the 10 inning scrimmage last night against Pasadena Memorial by a score of 7 - 6. The field was in great shape considering all the rain from the day before, and the Stangs brought their sticks to this game. Heisyan Forero had a triple, and both Jairus Alexander and Jayson McKinley had doubles, while several other Mustangs chipped in with timely singles. Forero's triple plated Walker Williams (single) in the first to give the Stangs a lead they never relinquished. The pitching staff looked sharp for this early in the season, limiting Memorial to a single, unearned run through 7 innings.

Next up for the Mustangs will be the final scrimmage games of the pre-season; the round robin match up with the La Porte Bulldogs and the Dickinson Gators this Friday evening at Dickinson High School. First game starts at 6 PM, followed by the night-cap at 8 PM. Head on down I-45 and support your Friendswood Nine!

UPDATE: Today's Varsity game against Pasadena Memorial is still on, but will start at 5 PM. Due to wet fields, both the JV and Sophomore games have been cancelled.

Check out the great photos of the 100 Inning Game at the link below! Photos courtesy of Karen Rhodes with Wall Giants. Thanks Karen!

Another 100 Innings Game has come and gone, leaving us with some great memories, new and renewed friendships, and a sense of the team our Mustangs can become with diligent effort from the players and coaches! This year's championship was claimed by the Blues, followed closely by the Blacks, with the Whites and Grays in a dead heat for third place. The Fungo-Man was hit around the park fairly well this year, with the highlights being big flys by Jairus Alexander, Christian Dao, Brent Janak, Walker Williams, and Hunter Kirkland.

The First Annual Home Run Derby was hotly contested, with dingers hit by Jairus Alexander, Christian Dao, and Brent Janak. But the championship was claimed by Walker Williams, with two big blasts over the right field wall.

The festivities culminated with an All Star Game where the Blacks & Grays combined to take on the Blues & Whites. It was a tight contest, but the Blues & Whites prevailed 6 - 4.

Thanks to all who came out to support our teams, and a special thanks to all the volunteers who worked so hard, some for several days, to make this year's event a huge success!

ALL GAMES CANCELED FOR TONIGHT (FRIDAY 02/10) - WE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT TOMORROW'S SCHEDULE BY LATE THIS AFTERNOON ONCE THE TARP IS REMOVED AND THE FIELD CONDITIONS ARE ASSESSED.

Contact Randy Alexander @ 832.659.7302 or wralexander17@gmail.com to volunteer or provide materials.

Thanks to everyone who came out to our first work day! The rain kept us in the batting cages and dugouts, but much was accomplished! Watch this site and your e-mail for information on a second work day. We still have work to do on the field once we dry out!

Baseball schedules are posted for all teams (subject to change!), as are all tournament schedules.

The Mustangs came up a bit short in their opening scrimmage against Concordia - Tomball, but it was great to get out on the diamond and begin the process of knocking the rust off! Highlight of the evening was a home run, hit by Christian Dao. With the new BBCOR bats, the "big flys" will probably be few and far between. Way to go Christian!! Thanks to all who made the last minute sojourn out to Tomball!

Next up for the Stangs will be the 100 inning game. Please see the schedule highlights below, and come out and support your boys of spring! The weather forecast is looking a bit better than it was a few days ago, and we hope to have a wonderful event that will raise funds for the program, and equally importantly, provide all of us a chance to get better acquainted.

REMINDER: Saturday, Feb. 4th is field work day! Rain or shine, we will have lots to do. If you can, please meet at the field by 9 AM. If it is raining, we can tackle several jobs in the batting cages, so we'll meet there. Thank you in advance for helping get our facilities in top shape for the 2012 campaign!

Thanks to parents and players attending the baseball meeting last night (Tuesday, 01/31/2012). Welcome to the baseball family!

Great weather, for a change, at tryouts! Thanks to everyone who came out for the team, and congratulations to the new and returning Mustang team members!