CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – Clarksville High School pitcher Christian Henderson has been awarded Clarksville Now Player of the Week for his production on the mound.
During the week of April 17, Clarksville High played in four games and came away with two victories. Henderson saw action in two of the contests played, including a relief appearance against Rossview High School last Monday.
Chip Harris started the game on the mound for CHS, but he was only able to get through 2.2 innings pitched. That’s when Henderson was called upon in a bases loaded situation with two outs and the Wildcats already trailing 0-3.
Weekly production
The junior pitcher closed out the inning in five pitches without allowing a run to score. Henderson finished the rest of the game with 3.1 innings pitched, 1 hit allowed, and he struck out 5 batters. He also did not allow a run or walk in the outing.
Clarksville High lost the game 1-3, but Henderson gave his team a fighting chance in the end.
The junior would not make another pitching appearance until two games later when he was given the nod to start on the mound against Lyon County.
Each team scored one run during the first inning, but run production became scarce throughout the rest of the matchup.
Henderson went on to pitch a complete game but gave up a solo home run in the fourth that ended up being the game winning run. Clarksville High wasn’t able to manage another run, so the game ended with Lyon County winning 2-1.
Henderson’s final stat line against Lyon County was 6 innings pitched, 5 hits, 2 earned runs allowed, 1 walk and 4 strikeouts.
Which means, in total, he pitched 9.1 innings, allowed 6 hits, allowed 2 earned runs, 1 walk and 9 strikeouts during the week of April 10.
2022-23 season
Henderson has become one of the most dominating pitchers in Montgomery County this season.
Before giving up two runs against Lyon County last week, he hadn’t allowed a run in over 28.1 innings pitched. During that timeframe, he threw for three complete game shutouts dating back to week 2 of the regular season.
Henderson’s statistics speak for themselves, and he’ll play an important role for CHS once the playoffs start.
Through five weeks, Henderson has compiled 40.1 innings, while only allowing 31 hits, 6 earned runs and 6 walks. He has also struck out 32 batters and has an ERA of around 1.05.
Henderson said he has felt great and comfortable during his junior year. He also mentioned that he has all the confidence in the world with the defense behind him, which has a fielding percentage of more than .900.
Coaches corner
“Christian’s been a big plus this year,” Clarksville High Head Coach Brian Hetland said. “We knew, as a sophomore last year pitching in JV, that he was going to have a chance and develop this year at the varsity level. But he’s been a pleasant surprise. Obviously, you can never evaluate fully in a JV setting, even though we play some really good teams just to prepare our guys for that next step.
“He’s developed the way that we had hoped, but you can never expect the kind of numbers that he’s put up. In high school baseball, to throw 29 innings in a row of shutout baseball, that’s just insane. From Christian’s perspective, he’s been a very good pitcher for us. He had a tough loss against a very good Lyon County team, but he played great in the game,” Hetland said.
“Christian has worked very hard; he’s worked extra on top of what he puts in at our workouts, and it’s really benefited him. And he’s pitched in big moments. He came in for relief in the Rossview game and shut them down the rest of that game to give us a chance to come back. That’s all we could ask for.”
What’s next
After losing two games last week, Clarksville High came into this week ranked fifth in the state by the TBCA.
The Wildcats have three games remaining until the regular season concludes, and then they turn their attention to the postseason.
As for Henderson, he plans to play baseball at the next level, and has spoken to a number of Division-I and Division-II athletic programs. One of the programs he has had conversations with is Middle Tennessee State.
Player of the Week
- Clarksville Academy centerfielder named Player of the Week for racking up 11 hits
- Rossview two-way player named Player of the Week after compiling batting average of .818
- Clarksville Academy two-way player named Player of the Week for dominating at plate
- Rossview High shortstop slugs his way into Player of the Week with 6 extra base hits
- Northwest pitcher named Player of the Week for no-hitter, which was dedicated to his father
Correction: Henderson was awarded for his play during the week of April 17. The article has been updated.