Green Varsity Baseball Returns: Bulldogs Split Series & Dominate
Returning Seniors Lead Bulldogs to a Split Series with McKinley and Dominant Win Over Ellet
As the basketball season wrapped up, Green’s varsity baseball team welcomed back familiar faces from the soon-to-retire Mark Kinsley roster.
Seniors Luke Jansen and Brady Rollyson returned to practices for their final season, slated for what would have been their home opener against McKinley. However, a weather-caused location swap shifted the Federal League series to begin in Canton.
Traveling south to Thurman Munson Stadium last Wednesday (March 27), Jansen and Rollyson brought with them a team full of experienced varsity talent. The Bulldogs split their following series with McKinley and dominated the Ellet Orangemen to conclude their first three games.
In case you missed it, here’s everything you need to know about Green varsity baseball’s weekday triad.
Green v. McKinley (1-1, split)
Game 1 at McKinley - 3-0 Win
Jansen started hot for Green, surrendering only two hits in 5.2 innings pitched. The 6-foot-4-inch right-hander notched 11 strikeouts while walking just three batters.
Junior RHP Jacob Harrelson stepped in to close against the opposing Bulldogs, allowing only one hit among the five batters he faced.
On the offensive side, Green got rolling in the first inning after a grounded hit into a fielder's choice from junior 3B Griff Carmichael sent Brady Rollyson home.
A second inning starved of runs spurred Green to secure two runs in the subsequent frames. Junior LF Brett Young grounded, inducing a costly error by McKinley, allowing senior DH Tanner Carson to notch another run for the Bulldogs. Senior 2B Owen Garee crossed the plate in the third inning following his single reaching second base due to error, setting up junior C Jack Logsdon to advance him to third base; this allowed him to reach home on a sacrifice fly.
Although I haven’t mentioned McKinley’s performance, I did note their suboptimal number of errors. This was the reason for their lack of success, leaving few words to say about their play.
Game 2 at Green - 3-5 Loss
Both teams seemed to lack defensive consistency when playing at their residences, resulting in a shared homefield disadvantage. Despite falling short, Green almost rallied late, which was impressive.
Senior RHP Anthony Manderine started on the mound for Green, striking out five batters. In his three innings pitched, McKinley earned four runs on five hits. Manderine saved Green from potential disaster on numerous occasions, decongesting jams in both the second and third innings.
Green head coach Jon Wallace decided to sub in Harrelson, who closed the previous day, to relieve for the Bulldogs. The right-hander struck out four batters, walking only one. Although he let up five hits, Harrelson managed to rebound by the end of every inning.
Infield errors were too frequent for Green, frequently passing up the left after drops.
McKinley’s dominant pitching from the Fawver brothers came to a halt after a Harrelson single in the sixth inning, leading to an exciting frenzy for Green.
Impressive contact and walks following Harrelson (senior Dominic Salomone, Tanner Carson, senior Aidan Twigg, Owen Garee, and junior Nolan McKendry) assisted Green’s three-run inning.
Sophomore RHP Sam Dubravetz closed for the Bulldogs.
Green fell short after a late run from McKinley, but showed offensive promise in the latter stretch.
Green v. Ellet
At Ellet - 20-3 Win (called in 5th)
That isn’t a typo; there isn’t much to say about Green’s victory over Ellet. The score says it all.
Dominic Salomone had three hits in three at-bats, all singles. Jacob Harrelson grounded out, leading to an Anthony Manderine run on a fielder’s choice. Salomone singled in the second, sending home two runners; in the same pursuit, Ellet had an error that gave Green another run.
It was error after error for the Orangemen, who didn’t stand a chance against Green.
Looking Ahead
As of publishing, the Bulldogs will play their next game against Brecksville-Broadview Heights on their home field at 12:00 today (March 30).
Green, now 2-1, look to regain their footing after splitting their series with McKinley.