Although only their third game of the regular season, the RBHS boys’ baseball team looked to be in mid-season form after demolishing Battle 11-1 in last night’s matchup. The win continued the Bruins unbeaten run, taking them to 3-0 on the year.
Senior Avery Jennings got the start for RBHS and was dealing early and often, limiting Spartan batters to only one run in six innings pitched. Jennings, a Drury commit, believed a good combination of his fastball and off-speed pitches were essential to his success while on the bump.
“I located with the fastball early in the count so I could use my slider to throw them off later in the at-bat,” Jennings said. “Once I showed I could locate my slider I was able to attack with it early in the at-bats to get ahead. Above all, pounding the strike zone and not allowing any free bases in the most important aspect of pitching.”
Surprisingly, Jennings’s fantastic performance on the mound wasn’t the biggest headline as the Bruin’s bats hung 11 on Battle including a six run top of the third.
“During third inning we started seeing the ball a lot better and were a lot more aggressive at the plate,” junior JP Schneider said. “Along with the hitting we caused havoc on the base paths and capitalized off their (Battle) mistakes. We knew we just had to continue to do the little things to be successful.”
Jennings would help his own cause in the third when he began the onslaught with a RBI due to a fielder’s choice. Senior Cameron Groll and juniors Nick Wohlbold and Schneider would also add RBIs of their own to force the floodgates wide open and give RBHS a 7-1 advantage.
“It always feels good to get on the mound with a lead,” Jennings said. “There’s a lot less pressure and it allows me to relax and let my natural pitching ability take over. It’s always easier to pitch when you’re loose.”
And the runs would continue for Jennings and the Bruins as back-to-back triples from seniors Curtis Holliday and Taten Lyngstad would swell the lead to 8. Sophomore Jack Roush and senior Cole Evans would tack on two more in the top of the seventh, sealing the RBHS victory at 11-1.
For Evans, a Mizzou Commit, his final season comes with more than a few expectations.
“For me personally I just want to be play to the best of my ability and be the best leader I can be for the team,” Evans said. “As far as a team I think I can speak for all of us when I say our goal is to win districts as that is our goal year in and year out.”
You can catch the Bruins try to extend their winning streak to four this coming Saturday, Mar. 26 at home when they face Liberty North.