Who is knocking the cover off the ball in Cincinnati high school baseball this week?
While it seems like rain has been the winner so far this high school baseball season, Greater Cincinnati teams have been able to play plenty of games lately. Still, league makeups will dominate schedules shortly.
As far as the recent past, here is a look at some of the top storylines for the past week in high school baseball.
More: Third SWOBCA poll features Moeller, Badin and Cincinnati Country Day
Moeller, Mason prepare for showdown of top teams
Moeller and Mason are the top teams in Division I in the latest state poll by the Ohio High School Baseball Coaches Association. The Crusaders and Comets will face each other for the only time in the regular season at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at Prasco Park in Mason.
Moeller is 12-0 and Mason 12-1. Moeller has scored 10 runs per game and allowed 2.2. The Crusaders are coming off a statement weekend in a local tournament sponsored by Prep Baseball Report in which they defeated Cleveland powers St. Edward and St. Ignatius, then beat a Northville (Michigan) team that went 31-5 last season.
Mason’s only loss was to Hamilton Southeastern from Indianapolis in a Spring Break trip to Tennessee. The Comets won three Greater Miami Conference games last week, beating Fairfield 2-0 and 1-0, then beating Lakota West 4-1 on Monday.
On Monday, Mason used its top two pitchers, Michael Bilo and Jacob Hanley. Moeller pitched its ace, junior Zion Theophilus, against Elder Monday. Theophilus pitched a four-hit shutout in a 5-0 win. Those hurlers would be eligible to take the mound on Saturday if their coaches want them to face off. Meanwhile, Moeller plays Elder again at its home field in Loveland Wednesday. Mason plays Oak Hills at home Wednesday and in Bridgetown Friday. Mason is 8-0 in the GMC while Oak Hills is second at 6-3.
Badin keeps rolling
Badin baseball, ranked sixth in Division II in the state coaches poll, is 10-2 and 4-0 in the Greater Catholic League-Coed as it enters a crucial stretch of its season. The Rams beat St. Ignatius and Kentucky power Louisville Trinity in the same tournament as Moeller and lost to Northville.
After facing Alter Tuesday, Badin plays at Springboro (ranked 13th in DI) Wednesday before playing two key games with Chaminade-Julienne Friday and Monday. CJ is 3-0 in the league and the games are a rematch of CJ’s win in the regional finals last season.
Sophomore Chandler Taylor has built on a strong freshman season, batting .429 so far with three home runs, five steals and 10 RBI.
Wyoming is off to a rare start
Wyoming is off to a 7-0 start for the first time in at least 18 seasons. The Cowboys are 14th in the DII state poll. They are 3-0 in the Cincinnati Hills League heading into road games this week at Taylor, Reading and Deer Park. Taylor is 2-1 in the CHL.
Junior Carson Stevens is hitting .636 with 14 hits in 22 at-bats, hitting one home run with five RBI and five steals. Senior Aiden Pippin has 10 RBI in 12 at-bats. Charlie Steed and John Paul Neufarth are 2-0, and Steed has a shutout.
Defending CHL champion Indian Hill is 4-0 in the league and 6-3 overall.
ECC is the wild, wild east
To say the Eastern Cincinnati Conference is tightly competitive is like saying dogs like to bark. Five of the league’s 10 teams have two losses in the league entering play on Tuesday. Turpin and Milford are 6-2. Loveland is 5-2, while Kings and Walnut Hills are 4-2. Anderson is right behind at 4-3.
This week will likely see movement in the standings as some makeup games are part of the schedule. There are full slates of five league games on Wednesday and Friday, two league games on Tuesday and Thursday and one on Saturday.
Turpin has three of the ECC’s top four hitters, Mac Reed, Nathan Kinsey and Mitchell Tamkus, who are all over .433. Senior Luke Jilek has three home runs.
Covington Catholic baseball leads the way in the 9th Region
Covington Catholic has been the best team in the Ninth Region so far with a 13-1 record. The Colonels, led by coach Bill Krumpelbeck, now with over 1,100 career wins, are 11-1 in Ninth Region play and have allowed only 19 runs for the season.
Jackson Reardon is hitting .475 with 12 RBI, six doubles, two triples and 11 steals. Pitcher Bradley Zekl is 4-0 with a 1.22 ERA, allowing only 10 hits in 23 innings. Eli Wagner is 3-0 with a 0.76 ERA.
CovCath plays at Campbell County Wednesday before playing in the Doc Morris Invitational this weekend.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati high school baseball's top storylines
