By Travis Smola
Vicksburg’s varsity baseball team has had a rough time early in the season. That fact was further punctuated by two recent losses in a doubleheader against rival Three Rivers.
The Bulldogs lost the first game 5-1 and struggled both offensively and defensively in the second. Three Rivers took the lead at the bottom of the second and never relinquished it despite the Wildcats giving some opportunities. Three Rivers walked multiple Bulldogs and hit two others with pitches. Unfortunately, the boys were unable to capitalize on these opportunities.
“This group is still finding their way,” Head Coach Brian Deal said. “It’s been a rare occasion we string a couple of hits together in the same inning. It might be a hit, followed by a strikeout, followed by a pop-up. Get another guy on, and then a strikeout. It’s been few and far between with hits and things like that.”
Vicksburg didn’t start finding a rhythm until the top of the seventh inning when Mitchell Beyer smacked a big double to center field. He advanced to second after Luke Deal grounded out to first on the next at-bat. A few plays later, the Bulldogs quickly found themselves down to their last out.
Fortunately, Graham Kubiak came into the game and hit a good single that was far enough to allow Beyer to score and avoid the shutout. Brady Dorscht was up next and hit a single to put runners on first and second. That’s when Korbin Dugan came into the game and made a big hit to left field, bringing Kubiak home. Unfortunately, that was the end of the scoring. Three Rivers ended the game shortly after 6-2.
Defense has also been a mixed bag for the Bulldogs this year. Pitcher Brady Young had a few key strikeouts in the second game. Beyer, Maddox Rosalin, and Jonathon Rose all had key defensive plays. However, Deal said they’ve often gotten themselves in bad situations where they walk people or let base hits through.
“We still have a lot of things we’ve got to tighten up on both sides of the ball, offensively and defensively,” Deal said. “I think that’s going to come, I think this group is very talented. There’s a lot of good players on this team, but right now we’re all over the place. We haven’t quite dialed it in to get there as a group.”
Michigan’s weather hasn’t been conducive to baseball since the season started. However, Deal noted that other teams are dealing with the same conditions. While the practices have been solid, there is always room for improvement.
“We’ve got a good competitive group, it’s just that right now we haven’t been able to put it all together,” Deal said. “The bottom line is, we’ve got to play better, and I’ve got to coach better. It’s a long season, and we’ve got 30 more baseball games yet to go. We’ve got a chance to get the ship righted here.”
