B-CC Baron pitcher throws 5 strikeouts 6-4 win over Whitman Vikings

No. 9 Barons upset No. 6 Vikings in Thursday matchup

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April 17, 2026 10:46 p.m.

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Barons senior Griffin Clear’s five strikeouts helped lead the Bethesda-Chevy Chase High baseball team to a 6-4 victory over the Whitman High Vikings Thursday afternoon in downtown Bethesda.

Clear pitched seven innings, allowing four hits, four runs (three earned), and walking only two.

“Staying cool is important,” said Clear, “but it’s really, when there’s two outs, I always get in the zone, gotta meditate a little bit, and then, yeah, that’s it.”

The Vikings (7-3) came into the game ranked No. 6 in the state 4A division by MaxPreps. Most recently, they beat the Churchill High Bulldogs 12-2 in Potomac on Tuesday night.

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The Barons (6-4) sit only three places behind the Vikings in division rankings at No. 9. They came into Thursday’s game having lost two straight.

The Vikings scored first with shortstop Ryan VanHuysen’s single in the top of the opening inning, giving them an early 1-0 lead.

The Barons first baseman Alex Butler responded immediately in the bottom half of the inning with a sacrifice fly to tie the game. Later in the first, Barons third baseman Jake Waldman came to bat with the bases loaded. Waldman hit a base–clearing double that flew up the right-field line to give the Barons a 4-1 lead at the end of the first inning.

The Vikings got one run back in the third inning on a towering solo home run by left fielder Puck Gardiner and looked to gain momentum.

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Things began to get rough for Clear when he gave up runs in consecutive innings. Clear was helped by an insurance double by centerfielder Oren Wortmon in the bottom of the fifth that scored the sixth Baron run of the game.

In an interview after the game, Barons manager Andrew Brilliant credited his team’s discipline with the win. 

“Whitman had really good arms today, but we were ready for it,” said Brilliant. “We were patient, we didn’t expand the zone too much. We let them come to us, and we took advantage of what we needed to.”

Clear ended the game having thrown nearly 100 pitches, something he has done before this season.

“He was telling me every single inning. ‘I want the ball,’ ” Brilliant said about his starter. “I just had faith in that guy.”

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Originally published at Bethesdamagazine