Noah Janney's complete game powers Windermere baseball to district title | Observer Preps

Noah Janney pitched his first seven-inning, complete-game of the season for the Windermere Wolverines May 4 — picking a pretty good day to do so.

Janney's performance — allowing one run and just three hits while striking out eight batters against the visiting St. Cloud Bulldogs — came in the FHSAA Class 8A, District 10 Championship.

That performance, paired with a pair of runs scored in the bottom of the second inning, were enough for the Wolverines (19-8) to earn a 2-1 victory — and a district title in the program's first year of existence.

"Our principal and our administration (at Windermere High) said 'the legacy begins' — and this is a great way to get it started, with a district championship," Wolverines coach Eric Lassiter said, moments before being soaked in an ice bath by his team.

The senior-less Wolverines were led by Janney's dominant outing on the mound — an outing that almost went quite differently. Though Janney cruised through innings two-through-seven, in the top of the first he encountered a jam. St. Cloud loaded the bases with no outs, but a double-play ball from shortstop Jason Grant to second baseman Diego Chavez to Carson Crossley over at first got two outs while allowing just one run, and Janney got a strikeout on the next batter to exit the first inning-jam with minimal damage.

"In the first inning I was slipping up on the mound," Janney said. "My defense, I trusted them and they turned a double-play."

Windermere scored its runs in the second inning on a bases-loaded walk to Joe Cobb and a misplayed hit by Jason Grant, giving them all the offense they would need for the day.

Now, the Wolverines will prepare to host Hagerty at 4:30 p.m. May 8 in the regional quarterfinals of the FHSAA Class 8A Playoffs.