Jackson Meter, Logan Andonian and Braden Frederick combined on a three-hitter as the Bulldogs rolled to an 8-0 victory at Alumni Field.
"That was terrible," said junior shortstop Daunte DeCello, one of only two starting position players back from Badin's 3-2, eight-inning loss to Defiance in the 2016 title game (senior outfielder Gavin Matthews is the other). "We've just got to keep practicing every day. We're going to get better each day. We'll be fine."
It was the Rams’ first official decision of the season. They played in a 0-0 suspended game that covered 11 innings Monday at Covington (Ky.) Catholic.
That means Badin has yet to score in 18 innings this year.
“I remember being in a similar spot last year, so I’m not panicking at all,” Rams coach Brion Treadway said. “We’ll just keep putting the work in and figure it out. We’re nowhere close to where we need to be. That’s why we’re just focused on getting better tomorrow.”
Tyler Hargrove was 2-for-2 with a walk for Badin, and Drew Holderbach added a single. The hosts got their leadoff batter on base four times, but also hit into two double plays.
Frederick’s two-run single sparked a four-run third inning for Defiance, which owns three of the last four D-II state championships. Blayne Robinson, Austin Taylor and Emilio Gonzalez drove in a run apiece, and Gonzalez and Frederick both had two hits.
The Bulldogs opened the year with a 12-4 loss to Moeller on Tuesday.
“We’re very happy with the way we played today,” Defiance coach Tom Held said. “We didn’t make plays yesterday, and that created big, crooked numbers for Moeller. Today, we made plays when we needed to.”
The Bulldogs will finish their spring break at home in Northwest Ohio. Moeller coach Tim Held is Tom’s cousin.
“We’ve been scrimmaging Moeller and Badin for years, and Lakota West when Bill Dreisbach was there,” Tom Held said. “We’d come down and get a beating most years. It was always good for us, though. You’ve got to play the best if you want to beat the best.
“Timmy is the one that got me hooked up with Badin. I said, ‘I want to play class guys and class programs.’ He goes, ‘Well, you want to start with Badin.’ He said the same thing about Coach Dreisbach and Lakota West.”
Andonian picked up Wednesday’s win with four innings of work in relief of Meter. Frederick recorded the last three outs.
Will Sackenheim gave up seven runs in three-plus innings and took the loss for the Rams. Andrew Noelker and Zac Wilson finished, with Noelker allowing no runs in three frames.
Treadway said Badin didn’t immediately go looking for a game against Defiance after losing in the state finals.
“It just worked out that their spring break coincided with the regular season this year,” he said. “In the baseball coaching world, I’ve got a good connection with Coach Held, and we’re always looking for good programs to play. So it’s great to have them down here.
“From a team standpoint, he graduated some key players and we graduated a lot, so this team has nothing to do with last year. We’re trying to figure out our own identity right now.”
Held said the Bulldogs have five starters back this season, but they lack a hammer on the mound. Last year’s ace, Shay Smiddy, is at the University of Louisville.
“Offensively, we think we can be pretty good this year,” Held said. “Our biggest question mark is that we don’t have that No. 1 pitcher. We’ve had a No. 1 for 20 years, so this is kind of new territory. It’s going to be pitching by committee this year, and I thought Logan Andonian did a tremendous job today. He just came in and threw strikes. I think he only threw three offspeed pitches. He just threw 81-, 82-mile-an-hour fastballs. He made them hit it and let our guys play defense.”
Treadway addressed his players in a lengthy postgame meeting Wednesday. DeCello said the message wasn’t complicated.
“Just come out and work every day,” he said. “The guys before us laid everything out for us. We’re a part of it, but we haven’t done anything to earn it yet. We’ve got to earn it.”
“This team has the potential to work hard and to get where we need to be on a daily basis from a mind-set standpoint and approach standpoint,” Treadway said. “This team is basically brand-new from an offensive standpoint. They’re adjusting to varsity pitching. They’re adjusting to the way we do things.”
Treadway is hoping to finish the CovCath game, but said he’s not sure if it will happen.
The Rams will visit La Salle for a makeup game Thursday. Defiance hosts Napoleon on Saturday afternoon.
Defiance 004-300-1—8-7-0
Badin 000-000-0—0-3-2
WP – Logan Andonian (1-0); LP — Will Sackenheim (0-1). Records: D 1-1, B 0-1
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