By Joanna Chadwick

It’s always a little dangerous doing an interview on the phone with two people because it can be difficult to know who’s talking.

With Bishop Carroll baseball’s Reed and Van Haneberg, the difficulty was keeping them on track in the interview.

All of a sudden, they would start to laugh. They’d apologize, might even take a deep breath and ask, “what was the question?”

“We get along really well,” Van said. “We have a lot of inside jokes, and we laugh a lot.”

Coach Charlie Ebright wasn’t too surprised.

“They are something else,” he wrote in a text. “Love those boys.”

Reed, a senior, plays third base for the Eagles, while Van, a junior, plays second and is the closer. While Reed is only a year and 10 days older, they rarely played on baseball teams together until high school.

“Reed is the quiet and reserved brother that just goes about his business and does his job,” Ebright said. “Van wants to be a star. Van is flashy, Reed is Joe Lunchpail.”

Van agreed.

“I like to make a play look as best as it can. I try to get that highlight-type of play,” he said. “… Reed, he can always make the play. If the team bunts, he’s always there to make the play. If you’ve got a strong runner up to bat, he’s probably going to get that guy out if the ball is hit to him.”

Reed was just as complimentary of Van.

“He has quick hands,” Reed said. “Turning double plays, that’s important. We have a connection on the field, so we’ve always been good at turning double plays. I’d say it takes timing, and we always have our timing down.”

They’re different types of hitters.

“I do my job — get the ball down and make contact. I’m not really a power hitter,” said Reed, who hits in the two-hole and has a .344 batting average with eight RBIs.

Van added: “He hits the ball to the opposite field, and I pull it to the left side.”

Van has a .345 batting average with 7 RBIs and six stolen bases.

Both are multi-sport athletes — Reed also played football, while Van played football and basketball. Both want to play baseball in college.

Their focus is the same, too. They want a Class 5A title.

“Our team has been talking about this state championship,” Reed said. “After we finished second last year, that’s all we wanted. We’re focused on getting better as a team.”

Carroll last won a state title in 2012.

“We want it really bad,” Van said. “We want to prove to everyone that we’re a good ball club but also that we can win a state championship, show them what we’re all about.”