The Ravenna Ravens’ baseball team mounted an early lead and erupted late against Youngstown Chaney, snapping their six-game losing streak to win decisively 9-3 last Friday evening in Youngstown.
“That was good for the guys,” said Coach Lee Lovejoy. “There was confidence last night, especially at the plate which is a big part of where we have been struggling and we had a lot of guys hit balls hard that were outs, but they could see it made a big difference in getting their confidence back where it needed to be for the second half of the year.”
It was one of Ravenna’s (2-11, 0-4) most complete games of the season in a campaign that has been layered with inconsistent performances, as the Ravens have struggled to play complimentary baseball.
Over the course of Ravenna’s six-game losing streak, its greatest challenge has been its offense, as the Ravens have been shut out twice and have scored more than four runs only once during that stretch.
On Friday, the Ravens settled into an early lead as senior first baseman Logan Hysell plated the game’s first run in the opening frame on a sacrifice fly to center field, followed by junior Tyler Nichols single on a fly ball that dropped into shallow right field, which ultimately brought home junior third baseman Alex Hall, who scored from first base because when the Cowboys committed a throwing error trying to prevent him from crossing home plate.
After adding runs in the third and fourth innings to increase the lead to 4-0, the Ravens pulled ahead 8-0 with a four-run fifth inning on two hits, one hit by pitch and a fielding error by Youngstown Chaney,
Sophomore designated hitter Landyn Godley drove in two runs on a single to center field, followed by a RBI-single to left field off the bat of Nichols and sophomore right-hander Carter Mitchell delivered a RBI-single to left field.
“It felt like early on we could have had some more runs and the balls were not falling so to finally get a bigger number in that inning and to stretch the lead was comforting,” noted the four-year coach.
In addition to a dominant offensive performance, Ravenna’s victory was aided by a complete game performance by Mitchell, who hurled seven innings, surrendered three runs (one earned) on four hits, three walks while striking out 10 batters in his first varsity start.
It was a promising showing to what was a dynamic start for Mitchell, who did not allow a hit through the first 4.1 innings of the game.
“Carter did a good job,” Lovejoy added. “We have put him in some relief situations, but we wanted to give him an opportunity to start and see what he could do because moving forward in the next couple of years, we see that as a role for him. Early on, he worked ahead did a good job of throwing strikes, pitching to contact, and letting our defense work when it needed to.”
According to Lovejoy, the Cowboys manufactured longer at-bats later in the game, allowing them to finally score in the final two innings, trimming the lead to 8-3 but said that it was Mitchell’s game to finish and praised the sophomore right-hander for overcoming adversity late in the game.
Having finally broken their losing streak, Lovejoy said that the Ravens still have plenty to show throughout the second half of the season, especially in the Metro Athletic Conference, as they have only competed in four league games so far.
He acknowledged that it has been a balancing act this year as the Ravens returned only four varsity starters in Hysell, Connor Welling, Sean Jordan and Matthew Fuller, with the rest of the players being first-year varsity starters.
“It is mixed, and we are seeing that growth of those guys who are experiencing varsity at this volume but also our senior guys who are starting to pick it up and also doing what is expected of them this year,” Lovejoy said. “I think we are starting to get there where we are going to turn the tables and guys start catching fire at the plate.”
He added that the Ravens have shown their varsity inexperience primarily at the plate but the victory against Youngstown Chaney was a step in the right direction.
Following a home-and-away series against MAC rival Akron Springfield on Monday and Tuesday, a home duel against league foe Norton on Wednesday, and a non-league home contest against Struthers on Thursday, Ravenna will hit the road and take on Cuyahoga Falls on Friday evening at 5 p.m.
