Oakton's Wager 'locked in'

After finishing 3-for-4 during his team's 10-4 win at Chantilly Monday night, Oakton senior Kevin Wager has emerged from a self-proclaimed hitting slump by busting out with a locked-in, four-RBI performance.

The most notable slump-breaking moment came when Wager drilled a second-inning fastball on the outside part of the plate, a shot that sailed past Chantilly center fielder Chris Gentile for an RBI-triple.

“When I hit that triple in the gap, I felt like I barely even swung,” said Wager, who'll play baseball at Villanova next spring. “I felt like I figured something out.”

The Cougars had one previous chance to figure themselves out against one of the Concorde District's top three teams, but a 7-1 setback at Westfield on April 1 opened the collective eyeballs of Oakton's team.

Wager, who finished 0-for-3 against the Bulldogs, wasn't himself back at the beginning of April. By his own admission, Wager was “jumping” at the ball, not sitting back and “letting it travel.”

In non-baseball jargon, this means that Wager wasn't keeping his front hip -- the one facing the pitcher -- closed, causing him to lose his power and swing wildly.

Still, it's correctable.

Wager focused on a drill in practice called “offset hitting,” where a screen is placed to the side of a batting tee. The object of the drill is to drive the baseball to the opposite field and into the screen, forcing the batter to keep his front side closed -- or locked in.

“The last two games he's been starting to lock in a little bit, you can see it coming back,” said Oakton coach Scott Rowland, whose team improved to 10-2 overall, 4-1 in the Concorde District. “The good part about him was that he was still producing when he wasn't swinging well.”

Chantilly starter Max Langford (1 2/3 innings, 5 earned runs, 3 hits, 4 walks and 2 hit batters) struggled with his control early, as Oakton earned three walks and scored two runs in the opening stanza.

The Cougars repeatedly held back on curveballs starting at their knees, allowing the pitches to fly out of the strike zone or bounce in the dirt. With Langford pitching in unfavorable counts, Oakton's patient hitters knew to look for fastballs.

In addition to Wager's triple, third baseman Connor Madden also ripped a high fastball to right center field for a run-scoring triple in the first inning. The Cougars led after two, 5-0.

Oakton tacked on four more runs in the top of the fourth inning, relying on singles from Wager, shortstop Alfredo Rodriguez (1-for-2, RBI, run scored) and pitcher Bret Williams (1-for-2, RBI, run scored).

Williams also earned the win with his six-inning performance on the mound, allowing six hits, four runs, three earned runs and two walks. The southpaw also struck out five.

“I think the Westfield game was an eye opener,” said Rowland, whose team will face Robinson tonight. “We've got to play well every game. We're not good enough just to show up ... not many high school teams are.”