NEDERLAND — Landon Hiltz stepped to the plate with two out in the bottom of the fifth inning and Nederland trailing at home, 2-1, to Port Neches-Groves. He was 0 for 4 against the Indians during the week with a walk and hit-by-pitch, although he scored two runs in the first game at Port Neches.

But the two-run double he smacked to put the Bulldogs ahead for good was a sign of a guy batting .517 on the season.

“His presence in our lineup has made a huge impact, especially being leadoff,” Bulldogs coach Bryan Spell said. “He’s done so much for us all year long. He’s put the work in. He’s a guy that can come in here December and January, and he’s out in the cage with his dad putting the work in. Anytime I come here, he’d be out here. He’s reaping the rewards of the hard work he’s put in.”

The rewards look very rewarding to the junior shortstop: He’s still hitting .475 (29 of 61) with two home runs, two triples, 10 doubles, 26 RBI, 35 runs scored and 15 stolen bases in 16 attempts. Texas Prep Baseball, which ranked Nederland No. 1 in its Houston-area 5A poll, named Hiltz its hitter of the week for the area.

Oh, and he has Nederland (16-5-1, 8-0 in 22-5A) sitting mightily atop the district.

“I’m hitting pretty good,” Hiltz said. “I’ve just got to keep it going. I can’t change anything.”

Just last year, Hiltz was batting somewhere in the .200s, by his own estimation. But a summer with the Mid-County team that went on to win the Babe Ruth World Series in Washington state has helped him improve his game at the plate.

“Not so much my swing as my confidence,” Hiltz said. “My confidence wasn’t just there last year, and now it is.”

A few Division I schools, including McNeese State, Furman and Alabama State, might have taken notice of his confidence in recruiting him.

Junior pitcher Conner Kemp has seen the improvement in Hiltz’s play from the summer and gives him credit for the run support.

“It feels good to have somebody who’s there to back you up, no matter what’s happening,” Kemp said.

Batting at the top of the order, Hiltz is the first player the Bulldogs turn to for run production. They already boast an outstanding pitching staff led by senior Braydon Credeur and Kemp.

“We know we’re going to have a chance to win when them two get on the mound,” Hiltz said. “All we have to do is get some runs, and we have a really good chance at winning.”

Nederland has six games remaining in the regular season, including a two-game set against Vidor that starts there Tuesday. The District 22-5A championship isn’t sewn up yet, but the Bulldogs are in the driver’s seat thanks in large part to Hiltz.

“I hope they don’t feel like they accomplished anything,” Spell said. “We have won some big ballgames, and I hope that gives us confidence moving forward, but we’ve got a lot more that we want to do. I hope they’re confident. They should be. They won some big games, come back and battled against some good baseball teams — not just Port Neches.”

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I.C. Murrell: 721-2435. Twitter: @ICMurrellPANews