He joked with players and coaches and spent much of the night sporting a wide grin.
And in fitting fashion, Temple’s longtime baseball coach went out a winner.
Haynes’ Dark team beat the White team 11-10 in 10 innings Monday night in the Central Texas High School Coaches Association All-Star Game at Baylor Ballpark.
“It’s bittersweet,” said Haynes, who retired last month after 23 seasons with the Wildcats. “It was nice to be able to go out and have a game like this and enjoy it.”
Nineteen local seniors capped their high school careers in the inaugural event that nearly ended in a tie before game officials decided to let the players finish it off.
Mexia’s Cody Price had the tiebreaking hit in the top of the 10th and the White team went down in order to seal the win for the Dark.
“I thought it was a well-played game,” Haynes said. “To be able to throw two teams together like that and no practice, I thought they did a great job. We couldn’t ask for a better performance from this whole group of kids.”
Haynes got a strong start from Temple left-hander Kevin Lock, who allowed two hits and struck out four in two innings, and had an RBI single to help the Dark team build a 5-0 lead. Lock also had an eighth-inning triple and came around to score.
“It was special, playing with coach Haynes, it’s been a fun ride,” said Lock, who has signed to play at Temple College. “He was a little different today, he was a little more laid back and told us to go out there and have fun.”
Belton’s Garrett Vail and Nick Wright helped the White team stay around and eventually take the lead.
Wright, who had one hit in three plate appearances during the season, hit a double down the left-field line and eventually scored on a three-run homer by Harker Heights’ Robbie Belliveau that made it 5-4. Wright also worked two innings with Vail, striking out three in two innings.
Vail had a pair of doubles to go with an RBI flyout in the bottom of the ninth that brought the White team within one after the Dark rallied to take the lead.
“It was fun getting out there with friends you’ve played with over the summer,” said Vail, who’s signed to play at Hill College.
The White team scored a pair of runs, one on Vail’s flyout and another on an error, in the bottom of the ninth to send the game to extras.
For the Dark team, Salado’s Garret Ward had an RBI triple and reached on an error in the first inning. For the White team, Academy’s Chase Reeders had a two-run double, fellow Bumblebee William Bunker had a pair of singles and Rogers’ Cameron Doskocil had two hits.
“It turned out great,” Haynes said. “What a great performance for Central Texas. We hope to build on it.”
rschneider@temple-telegram.com
