High school baseball: Cloverleaf christens new turf field with MAC win over Streetsboro

WESTFIELD TWP. — When it comes to Medina County high school baseball, Mother Nature may have found a formidable foe.Armed with its new turf field, no amount of snow or rain, which both happened Monday, was going to keep the Colts from playing their home opener, an 8-3 win over Streetsboro in Metro Athletic Conference play. "I think just having that mindset that we know as long as it's not lightning during game time, we are good to go," first-year Cloverleaf coach Aaron DeBord said. "I think it's a relief to the kids. They don't have to be worrying about what the weather's like or what's going on. They just get locked in and get ready to play."The game started with pregame festivities, as members of the Cloverleaf baseball family and board of education threw out ceremonial first pitches on the new field."It was a really, really cool environment today with all the people here, the board of education, all the first pitches, all the alums, we had a great crowd here today," DeBord said. "They came out and supported the boys, and I'm glad they played well for them."Once the game started, Streetsboro (0-4, 0-2) took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, but Cloverleaf (2-2, 1-0) bounced back with two runs apiece in the second and third to take a 4-1 lead. The Colts then scored two more in the fifth and sixth innings to take an 8-1 lead.Freshman Brady Long and junior Carson Baltic led the way with three hits each, including an inside-the-park home run for Baltic in the third.On the mound, senior Walker Smith (1-1) went the distance, allowing three runs (2 earned) on nine hits while striking out five. He retired nine in a row at one stretch after an infield single to lead off the second."It felt amazing to go out there and just shove in the home opener," Smith said. "It was a great feeling."As for throwing off the turf mound, Smith said it's something a pitcher has to get used to, but he could feel some advantages over a dirt mound."It's a lot different, but in some aspects, it's a lot better," Smith said. "I feel for myself, I can control better my mechanics, and I just went out there and I did what I know how to do. Not having a huge divot where your foot is landing is great."His battery mate, Baltic, also noticed a definite advantage behind the plate."You don't get really bad hops. It's nice," Baltic said. "You don't get a rock in your eye or kind of see if there's curveball down, you can block it easier. You can kind of predict almost where it is."Another advantage for the turf, which at Cloverleaf is brown on the basepaths with a two-tone green on the infield and in the outfield, is when landing after diving is softer. Long found that out in the third inning when he dove to catch a line drive at third base to end the inning."It feels amazing, just feels amazing," he said.While the turf looks and feels great, the field gives the baseball team the same advantage it has given the softball team: the ability to get outside on these cold Ohio spring days."We've only practiced inside three times this year, so the field itself has been a game changer for us," DeBord said. "My kids have kind of developed my kind of mindset about not caring how cold it is. If we can be outside, we're going to be outside, even if it's for 45 minutes or an hour. The ability to get different things done at practice has just been a real game changer for us. It's really made it so we can do a lot more live looks and really get a feel for how to play here."Contact Ryan Isley at sports@medina-gazette.com.Cloverleaf 8, Streetsboro 3STREETSBORO 100 000 2 — 3 9 2 CLOVERLEAF 022 022 x — 8 10 1WP — Walker Smith (1-1) 7 innings, 2 earned runs, 0 walks, 5 strikeouts. LP — Jake Szczecinski (0-2) 4 innings, 4 runs, 2 earned, 4 hits, 3 strikeouts, 2 hit by pitch, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts. Streetsboro (0-4, 0-2) — Szczecinski 2 singles, RBI; Jadyn Dufala single, double, run; Scott Wilson triple, RBI, run. Cloverleaf (2-2, 1-0) — Vincent Hinderman double, triple, RBI, run; Brady Long 2 singles, double, RBI, 3 runs; Carson Baltic 2 singles, home run, 3 RBI, run.