Home Notice Box Sports Bad day for Bulldogs in run-ruled loss

Bad day for Bulldogs in run-ruled loss

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YELLOW SPRINGS — After sending eight Troy Christian batters to the plate in the opening inning and falling behind 2-0 right away, the host Yellow Springs Bulldogs seemed to come unraveled in a 13-0 run-ruled loss at Gaunt Park.

Yellow Springs coach Brandon Bresler said he had to take starter Dylan Rainey off the mound after 7o pitches, to ensure that he would have his junior ace back and rested for Rainey’s next scheduled game start on Saturday.

According to the Ohio High School Athletic Association pitching rule, pitchers have to rest three days between appearances if they pitch more than 76 pitches, with a maximum daily pitch limit of 125 pitches. If a pitcher goes 51-75 pitches, he’s out for two days of rest. If he throws 31-50 pitches, he’s out for one day. Thirty pitches or less, there’s no requirement to sit out. So Rainey will not pitch Thursday or Friday, but can return on Saturday, April 21 when the Bulldogs play an odd doubleheader of sorts.

Yellow Springs (2-3, 1-1 Metro Buckeye Conference) will travel south to take on Middletown Christian for an 11 a.m. game Saturday morning. They’ll then meet Troy Christian on the neutral field of Dayton Christian High School for a 3 p.m. contest.

“An extreme lack of focus is the nicest way I can describe this loss,” Bresler said. “I counted us for 12 errors in the game, and most of those happened early on. It got to the point where I had to pull my best pitcher out after two innings, because he was already at his pitch limit. The pitch count rule kills teams like us, who don’t have very many guys that throw on the mound for us.”

The visiting Eagles (4-1, 4-1 Metro Buckeye Conference) plated two runs in the first inning, four runs in both the second and third innings, two more in the fourth and another in the fifth for the 13-0 win.

“We got a lot of clutch hitting tonight. And when we got people on base, we did a good job of putting the ball in play,” Troy Christian coach Anthony Ferraro said. “Not striking out with runners on base is something that we’re really really working on, and now we’ve got a nice little win streak going. That’s now five (wins) in a row for us.”

Troy Christian starting pitcher Caleb Twiss had a perfect game going through 3 1/3 innings, but Yellow Springs’ senior catcher Donnie Isenbarger broke that up with a solid one-out double into right field in the fourth inning. Rainey recorded the other Bulldogs hit, a two-out single to left in the fifth. Twiss recorded 12 strikeouts in his five innings of work, with a pair of groundouts and a nifty pickoff of Isenbarger at second as his other outs.

“We know this was just one of those days that teams have. Yellow Springs is a solid team. They have two or three kids who hit the ball really well. I think we just got them down. And sometimes, when you get a team down, well, we were able to take advantage of it,” Ferraro said.

Wednesday was one of those times.

Yellow Springs has a busy rest of the week ahead. The Bulldogs play at Dayton Christian at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, April 19 at Dayton Christian, then they’ll take on Dayton Christian for a home contest at Gaunt Park on Friday, before their road trip doubleheader with Middletown Christian and Troy Christian on Saturday.

Troy Christian’s schedule is just as goofy. The Eagles are at Emmanuel Christian for a 5 p.m. Thursday, April 19 contest, then they’re up in West Liberty-Salem on Friday, before meeting with Dayton Christian and the Bulldogs for that odd twinbill on Saturday.

Yellow Springs reliever Travis Scarfpin (9) brings a pitch to home plate in the fourth inning of a run-ruled April 18 high school baseball game with visiting Troy Christian, at Gaunt Park. Troy Christian won, 13-0, in five innings.
http://www.xeniagazette.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/32/2018/04/web1_TravisScarfpinPitch_PS.jpgYellow Springs reliever Travis Scarfpin (9) brings a pitch to home plate in the fourth inning of a run-ruled April 18 high school baseball game with visiting Troy Christian, at Gaunt Park. Troy Christian won, 13-0, in five innings. John Bombatch | Greene County News

Bulldogs relief pitcher Tony Marinelli (20) leaps to get the throw from the Gaunt Park backstop as Troy Christian’s Louden Saulbeamer (18) slides home for a score in the bottom of the third inning, April 18 in Yellow Springs.
http://www.xeniagazette.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/32/2018/04/web1_TonyMarinelliLoudenSaulbeamer_PS.jpgBulldogs relief pitcher Tony Marinelli (20) leaps to get the throw from the Gaunt Park backstop as Troy Christian’s Louden Saulbeamer (18) slides home for a score in the bottom of the third inning, April 18 in Yellow Springs. John Bombatch | Greene County News

Dylan Rainey of Yellow Springs dives safely back to first base as Troy Christian first baseman Chase Aivalotis eyes the throw in, Wednesday April 18 at Gaunt Park in Yellow Springs.
http://www.xeniagazette.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/32/2018/04/web1_DylanRaineyChaseAivalotis_PS.jpgDylan Rainey of Yellow Springs dives safely back to first base as Troy Christian first baseman Chase Aivalotis eyes the throw in, Wednesday April 18 at Gaunt Park in Yellow Springs. John Bombatch | Greene County News

Yellow Springs catcher Donnie Isenbarger reaches for a low and outside pitch, as Troy Christian batter Carson Kindred swings and misses for a strikeout, in the third inning of Wednesday’s 13-0 run-ruled road win by Troy Christian at Gaunt Park.
http://www.xeniagazette.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/32/2018/04/web1_CarsonKindredIsenberger_PS.jpgYellow Springs catcher Donnie Isenbarger reaches for a low and outside pitch, as Troy Christian batter Carson Kindred swings and misses for a strikeout, in the third inning of Wednesday’s 13-0 run-ruled road win by Troy Christian at Gaunt Park. John Bombatch | Greene County News

By John Bombatch

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Contact John Bombatch at 937-372-4444, Ext. 2123.