CVCA at a glance ahead of OHSAA baseball state semifinal vs Watterson

[ASFN Admin]

State tournament week has arrived in Ohio high school baseball, and two Summit County teams are in the mix to compete for a championship trophy.

CuyahogaValleyChristianAcademy (23-9) is the first Summit County team that will compete this week when it meets second-ranked Columbus Bishop Watterson (26-3) in a Division III state semifinal at 7 p.m. Thursday, June 11, at Thurman Munson Memorial Stadium in Canton.

CVCA is in its first OHSAA baseball state tournament and is two wins away from winning a championship.

Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy baseball at a glance​

• CVCA's tournament wins: Youngstown East 10-0 in sectional final; Northwest 19-0 and Lake 7-4 in 10 innings in district bracket; Chardon 2-0 and Archbishop Hoban 3-2 in regional bracket
• CVCA's projected starting pitcher: Kyle Shaw, Sr.
• CVCA's projected batting order: Layne Davis, Jr., RF; Connor McGough, Sr., SS; Jacob Lancy, Sr., 3B; Jonah Gaudio, Jr., LF; Peyton Drabick, Soph., 2B; Alex Mammone, Jr., 1B; Zac Anderson, Jr., CF; Jackson Crews, Soph., DH; Evan Wensel, Sr., C.
• CVCA's top reserves: Logan Kish, Sr., DH-P; Daniel Walker, Sr., C; Bo Lanzilotta, Soph., OF; Luke McQuillen, Jr., INF; Ryan Tajgiszer, Sr., P; Ben Pittner, Jr., P

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• CVCA's hitting leaders: McGough, a Davidson recruit, is batting .420 with 47 hits, 49 runs, 36 RBIs, 13 doubles, two triples, seven HRs, 23 stolen bases and a 1.259 OPS. ... Lancy, a Bryant & Stratton recruit, is batting .371 with 33 hits, 27 runs, 29 RBIs, seven doubles, four HRs and a 1.121 OPS. ... Gaudio is batting .354 with 34 hits, 26 runs and 24 RBIs. ... Drabick is batting .341 with 29 hits, 16 runs and 21 RBIs. ... Anderson is batting .310 with 22 hits, 18 runs and 15 RBIs. ... Mammone is batting .294 with 30 hits, 18 runs and 18 RBIs
• CVCA's pitching leaders: Shaw, a Baldwin Wallace recruit, is 6-3 with a 2.42 ERA and 50 strikeouts in 55 innings. ... Drabick is 4-1 with a 2.30 ERA and 77 strikeouts in 48⅔ innings. ... Mammone is 4-1 with a 1.82 ERA and 42 strikeouts in 34⅔ innings. ... Tajgiszer is 3-0 with a 3.71 ERA in 17 innings. ... Pittner is 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA in 14⅔ innings. ... McGough is 2-1 with a 2.74 ERA in 7⅔ innings. ... Kish is 2-0 with a 0.52 ERA in 13⅓ innings

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• Quotable Part I: “I am so proud of these kids and the culture we have created,” CVCA coach Jason Herblet said. “It started 12 years ago when I started here. My staff [Ben Miller, Kyle Silk and Ryan Starcher] is pretty much the same staff that has been around the whole way through. It has been exciting to watch the program grow and the program be built up to this point. ... What's great about this team is they love each other, they encourage each other and they are fun to be around."
• Quotable Part II: “We have had tough losses in the past [in the regional tournament],” Lancy said. “I think that just fueled us. … We play together. We pick each other up. We want it more for each other than we do individually. That is the key. We play for the Lord.”
• Quotable Part III: "The past three years we have had these runs, we have made it one game further than we have the year before," Shaw said. "My sophomore year we made it to the regional semifinal, last year we made it to the regional final and now we are going to the state tournament."

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• Quotable Part IV: "I am super pumped for this group," Drabick said. "We have been fighting really hard to be at this moment. We are going to give it our all and hopefully win the state championship."
• Quotable Part V: “I think the best teams in the world play for each other and they play for their creator,” McGough said. “They play to glorify their creator.”
• Other semifinal: No. 1 Hamilton Badin (28-3) vs. No. 10 Parma Padua Franciscan (26-5), 4 p.m. Thursday, June 11, at Canton's Thurman Munson Memorial Stadium
• State final: 7 p.m. Friday, June 12, at Akron's 7 17 Credit Union Park (formerly Canal Park)

Akron Beacon Journal sports writer Michael Beaven can be reached by email at mbeaven@thebeaconjournal.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: CVCA OHSAA baseball state semifinal preview vs Watterson

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