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They say that hope springs eternal as the school year nears a close. 

Such can also be said about the George Rogers Clark High School baseball team. 

For the second straight year, the Cardinals (22-13) won the 40th District Championship, a feat accomplished when they beat Bourbon County (3-20) on Sunday, May 18, and Montgomery County (18-14) on Monday, May 19. 

“The group expectation was to handle business in the district this year,” said senior Kamden McAlpin, a commit to Eastern Kentucky University. “I think we just have [an] experienced group of guys that have played in the postseason, so we expect to come through.” 

Notably, the Cards – who won the district championship at Bourbon County High School last season – took home the championship on their own field as the host school. 

In the first contest, with sophomore pitcher Myles Frick on the mound throwing a complete game and finishing with nine strikeouts, the Cards got out to an early lead and led the Colonels 3-0 after sophomore Jacob Todd brought home McAlpin on a sacrifice fly, and a sprinting senior Ben Fulks beat out a throw on an infield single, allowing sophomore Abrahm Howard and an aggressively running sophomore Abe Mullins to score. 

After junior Brady Freeman scored on an error, one of six from the Colonels during the game, Bourbon Count showed signs of life early in the third inning as senior Braxton Lail delivered an RBI single to bring home sophomore Preston Centers and make the score 4-1. 

However, the Cards wouldn’t be denied. 

Fulks knocked in sophomore Tielor Howie with an RBI single in the bottom of the third inning – one of his four RBI’s during the game – and the Cards moved on to a convincing 11-1 win in five innings. 

“Going into my first district start, I had a little bit of nerves, and then after getting that out of the way I felt settled in,” said Frick. 

“I like to just keep it simple…we’ve been swinging the bat pretty good lately,” added Fulks. 

Just twenty four hours later, the Cards were back on the field taking on the Indians, who had defeated Paris in their own 10th Region semifinal matchup. 

In a sign of what was to come, the Cards’ first three hits were from extra bases. 

GRC scored in the top of the first on an RBI double from Mullins after a leadoff double from McAlpin, and added four more in the second inning on a well-executed suicide squeeze bunt from Freeman, a two-run RBI single by McAlpin – featuring a nifty slide by sophomore Gunner Martin to avoid the tag – and McAlpin sprinting home to score on a passed ball. 

However, rival Montgomery County wouldn’t go quietly. 

In the top of the 3rd inning, the Indians strung together four consecutive two-out hits, the last two being RBI singles from sophomore Brayden Dore and freshman Brody Roland to make the score 5-2. 

Yet GRC’s offense would prove too insurmountable. 

During an inning that started with a leadoff single from Todd, the Cards scored seven runs. 

A trio of two-out singles by Freeman, Martin, and Howard made the biggest impact, with Todd’s sacrifice fly accounting for the last run scored. 

Although the Indians would score twice more in the top of the 4th inning, the Cards added to their lead on RBI hits once more from the trio of Freeman, Martin, and Howard. 

After senior relief pitcher Maddox Campbell delivered a 1-2-3 inning, the Cards celebrated with a 15-4 victory in five innings. 

“I’m ready to go with this team,” Freeman added. “It’s awesome!” 

“Our kids came out with passion, energy, and played well,” said Head Coach Eddie Brooks. “I thought that we showed up for the first pitch [until] the last pitch and played like a complete team.” 

Individually, all tournament team honors were awarded to McAlpin, Howard, Fultz, and Frick. 

On Saturday, May 24, the Cards find out who they’ll play in the 10th Region Tournament, set to take place at Campbell County High School during the final week of May.