They’re proving they belong amongst the top teams in the state this season. The Cougars are 11-2 and 9-1 in the CBC Kenton Trail Division this season. They’ve won 10 of their last 11 games and are ranked eighth in the DIvision II state poll.
The key has been pitching and defense, Shaffer said.
“Our pitchers just pound the strike zone and we play really good defense,” Shaffer said. “You make it hard for opposing teams to score. You make them earn everything they get. We’ve done a good job of that so far.”
They’re led by four starting pitchers who have combined for six shutouts and a 0.747 team earned run average — seniors Kegin Dotson and Riley Niggemeyer, junior Caleb Obee and sophomore Jake Beard. They’ve pitched 72 of 75 innings for the Cougars this spring.
“I think we’ve got four No. 1 guys we can roll out there and be confident they’re going to have a solid outing,” Shaffer said.
Obee is 3-0 and leads the Cougars with 29 strikeouts in 16 innings. He’s able to mix in a high 80s fastball with a hard slider, Shaffer said.
“He’s got that swing and miss stuff,” he said.
Dotson (2-0, 18 Ks in 16.2 IP) and Beard (2-1, 18 Ks in 19.1 IP) also pound the strike zone, Shaffer said. Niggemeyer (4-0, 18 Ks in 20 innings), the rotation’s lone left-hander, is tied atop the CBC with four wins this season and provides a different look.
“All of these guys have pretty good velocity and that helps,” Shaffer said. “They’re being very efficient.”
The Cougars started the season 1-1, falling to D-I eighth-ranked Grove City 5-2.
“Even though we lost the game, our guys got a lot of confidence,” Shaffer said. “They felt like we could play with anybody.”
While they’re hitting .325 on the season, Shaffer knows the Cougars have yet to hit their stride. Junior shortstop Logan Fyffe leads the team with a .463 batting average, while Obee, Beard and senior Keller Fultz each have 12 RBIs.
“I think we can be a lot better offensively,” Shaffer said. “When this team puts it all together, I think we can be really, really good.”
After back-to-back wins against London, Kenton Ridge saw its 10-game winning streak on Thursday with a 10-0 loss at Graham (9-5, 7-3).
The Cougars face a huge Central Buckeye Conference Kenton Trail Division series with D-II second-ranked and unbeaten Jonathan Alder (13-0, 9-0) on Monday and Wednesday. Kenton Ridge is seeking its sixth CBC Kenton Trail Division championship since 2015.
The Pioneers won the league title last season.
“They know there’s a lot at stake,” Shaffer said. “(Jonathan Alder) is a lot like us. They’re very fundamentally sound. They’re going to throw strikes, play good defense and if you’re going to score, they’re going to make you earn it.”
Kenton Ridge also hopes to make a splash in the postseason. The Cougars hope to be the top seed in the new D-II super sectional, which includes all 17 teams in the Dayton region. They previously played in a six-team sectional made up of mostly CBC opponents.
“It’s something we’ve been hoping for for a lot of years,” Shaffer said. “It gives us some options on where to go on the bracket.”
● Graham senior Casey Kelley is ranked second in the CBC with 13 RBIs. He’s hitting .488 with six doubles for the Falcons, who are a half-game back of Indian Lake (9-3, 7-2) in the CBC Mad River Division.
● After a 1-2 start, Mechanicsburg has won six straight games to improve to 7-2 and 5-2 in the Ohio Heritage Conference North Division. They host a key division game against D-III 15th-ranked West Jefferson (10-4, 8-2) at 5 p.m. Monday.
● Southeastern junior Gehrig Cordial ranks among the OHC leaders with a .476 batting average this season.
● Northeastern senior Cade Houseman leads the OHC with three home runs for the Jets (8-7, 6-4) this spring.
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