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Early offense lifts JFK

Eagles advance to regional final with 10-2 win

By Brian Yauger 4 min read

STRONGSVILLE -- When your opponent has a 10-minute drive to a neutral site game compared to your commute that's over an hour, taking the crowd out of the equation is an important first step.

The Kennedy baseball team did just that on Friday, silencing the crowd early to the tune of two first-inning runs, then continuing to pile on, beating Columbia, 10-2, in a Division IV regional semifinal at Strongsville High School.

By the end of the third inning, the Eagles held a 7-0 advantage. To Kennedy coach Jim Ciambotti, that early flurry of runs was exactly what the team needed.

"With such a young team that we have I think that took a lot of pressure off us," Ciambotti said. "Obviously we're playing in a hostile environment even though this is kind of a neutral site, (Columbia is) like 10 minutes away so we really wanted to take the crowd out of it. I just think it helped relax us."

The opening two runs, led to another four in the second inning. Junior Gavin Shrum played a large role in that success, knocking in four runners on the afternoon on three hits and rounding the bases twice. Shrum knocked in two runners in the second inning to put the team up 5-0.

On the mound for Kennedy was senior Cam Hollobaugh. Hollobaugh struck out 10 while only walking one. He had a hit and RBI at the plate.

With the team knocking in those early runs, Hollobaugh said there was less pressure on him while on the mound.

"It gave us a lot of confidence, especially on the mound," Hollobaugh said. "Pitching with the lead is a lot easier than it is when you don't have any runs, or you're only up by a couple. You can just throw strikes, let them put it in play and let our defense make a play."

The Raiders pushed back slightly in the fourth and fifth innings, scoring a run in each inning and keeping Kennedy scoreless, but the Eagles shut the door on any hopes of a comeback in the sixth, with Shrum knocking in his second pair of runners.

Kennedy is not only a small team, with only 11 players, but they're also inexperienced. Seven of the team's 11 players are underclassmen, meaning this season was their first chance to play high school baseball.

The team has adapted quickly however. With Hollobaugh, the lone senior on the team, leading the way and a tough regular season schedule, the Eagles have come into the postseason on a mission.

"We have a very young team," Ciambotti said. "We only have 11 kids on the team, six of them are freshmen and one is a sophomore. We tried to schedule up to play a lot of D-II, D-III teams, even D-I to get ready for the postseason. Hopefully that's prepared us and so far it's worked out."

While the Eagles are taking each game at a time, they're not afraid to set their goals high.

"Our goals are a little bit higher," Ciambotti said. "We'll just take it one day at a time. We'll enjoy this for a couple hours and when we get up, we've got a big fight."

That big fight is against Tiffin Calvert, who beat Mathews, 12-2, just after Kennedy's win. First pitch in the regional finals is set for today at noon at Strongsville High School.

"We're gonna celebrate," Hollobaugh said. "But we're right back here tomorrow and looking to get the job done just like we did today."

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