James Franks is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Higley High School for AZPreps365.com

A large and enthusiastic crowd of Williams Field fans traveled the two miles between schools to cheer on their Black Hawks on Thursday night. They did not go home happy after Higley dominated Williams Field, 9-3. 

The win for the Knights (8-1) came two nights after a walk-off loss to Casteel. 

The game contained a competitive intensity by both teams. After Higley scored in the bottom of the first inning on an RBI groundout by Jake Willerup, Williams Field immediately responded in the top of the second inning with a home run by Logan Hall to even the score, 1-1. 

The Knights reclaimed the lead in the bottom half of the second inning after an RBI single by Michael Ojeda and an RBI double by Justin Chambers, which made the score, 3-1.    

Higley proceeded to score in every inning except the sixth. 

Tyler Deskins earned the win for the Knights. He pitched four innings, gave up two runs on three hits and recorded three strikeouts. Bronson Sluiter took over for Deskins in the fifth inning. He pitched two innings, allowed two hits and struck out one.

Zach Makey pitched the final inning. He closed the game by striking out Kade Newman looking.

Williams Field senior Kyle Whittet was charged with the loss.  

Despite the lopsided score, Williams Field was never out of the game. The Bulldogs had their biggest threat in the top of the fourth inning when they loaded the bases with one out and had the tying run at the plate.

Deskins was able to escape the inning with limited damage after two consecutive groundouts and only giving up one run.

Deskins was confident in his defense during the Williams Field rally. 

“I knew I could trust them,” he said. “I knew if I hit my spots then my defense (behind me) would work and we'd be good.” 

Defensive and baserunning mistakes proved to be costly for the Black Hawks as they committed two errors, a passed ball, got caught stealing and let Higley steal two bases.   

Williams Field coach Randy Clifford expects better results from his team. 

“We didn't play well enough to win defensively,” he said. “We didn't answer the bell. We didn't play great defense that gave us an opportunity (to win). We're better than that.”

Clifford said he plans to reteach the fundamentals to his team after they struggled to make routine plays. 

Higley coach Terry Dietz was impressed with the enthusiasm and effort that his team displayed.

“These guys (Higley) play with a tremendous amount of energy and they are able to provide that night in and night out,” he said. “The execution has gotten much better and continues to get much better.”

Dietz realized that his team had the advantage on Thursday night against a strong opponent. 

“Coach Clifford does a great job with those guys,” he said. 

While the bleachers at Higley High School became a sea of Willams Field red and black, the Higley dugout helped even the playing field.

“The energy in the dugout was probably the most important thing,” Deskins said. 

The win keeps Higley in second place in the 5A San Tan region. The Knights will host Gilbert at 11 a.m. Saturday.

The loss puts Williams Field (5-4) in fourth place in the 5A San Tan region. The Black Hawks will host North Canyon at 3:45 p.m. Wednesday.