The Cavs are off to a rough start this season. After their loss to the Leroy Greene Lions on March 20, the boys are now 1-5.
But their schedule has been anything but easy.
They have faced off against Vacaville Christian School and Valley Christian Academy twice, both of which are undefeated in their leagues.
The Cavs went into their match against the Lions with a vengeance, having previously lost to them, 3-7, on March 17.
But the boys couldn’t secure their second win of the season and fell once again to the Lions, 4-7.
After beginning the game with a strikeout, the Cavs gave up a triple, allowing the Lions to get into scoring position and go up 0-1.
The Cavs answered back with two singles of their own, and by the end of the first, the score was tied.
After going scoreless in the second, the Lions began to feel it in the third. Two singles and a walk meant the bases were loaded for senior pitcher Zane Jakobs. But on the first pitch Jakobs hit the batter, bringing a run home for the Lions.
“I was trying to throw an up-and-in fastball, and I missed,” Jakobs said.
And Jakobs couldn’t catch a break.
After a walk and an error, the Lions found themselves up 4-1.
By the time the bottom of the fifth came around, the Lions were up, 6-1.
But the Cavs weren’t about to go down without a fight.
Senior Aidan Cunningham singled on a ground ball to center field and advanced to second on defensive indifference.
With Cunningham in scoring position, sophomore Nate Jakobs hit an inside-the-park home run, cutting the lead to 6-3.
And after singles by Zane and sophomore Jack Christian as well as freshman Jackson Crawford getting hit by a pitch, the bases were loaded for the Cavs.
With a 2-0 count, senior Daniel Hernried chose to bunt. The gamble paid off, bringing in one run.
But the Cavs’ comeback ended with the next at bat, and the Lions increased their lead in the following innings, ending the game 4-7.
Senior Emil Erickson said although the Cavs had good hits, they couldn’t convert them into runs.
“We would get a couple hits every inning instead of in a row,” Erickson said.
“We just weren’t able to string hits together.”
Nate agreed with Erickson, saying the Cavs need to work on converting players in scoring position into runs.
“We hit the ball very well, but we really need to start getting hits with two outs and guys on base,” Nate said.
“We can’t leave runs out there.”
The Cavs will look to take down their first big cat of the year when they face off against the Lutheran Panthers on Friday, March 24, at 3 p.m. at Zehnder Park (9212 Edisto Way).
—By Jake Longoria
