GALION, Ohio — Most of the fireworks were reserved for the postgame display, but Ridge Winand delivered a few of his own Sunday at Heddleson Field.
The Clear Fork graduate belted his first home run and had three hits in Galion’s 8-1 loss to Grand Lake in Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League action.
In his last seven games, Winand is batting a team-best .417 with two doubles, a triple, a homer and five runs batted in. His OPS during that stretch is a Ruthian 1.137.
“I’m feeling really good at the plate,” said Winand, a rising redshirt sophomore at Ohio State. “I’m trying to see the ball deep and see the ball backside. That’s my game.”
The left handed-hitting Winand singled to lead off the second and flew out to deep right field in the fourth. He singled again in the sixth before turning on a 2-0 Sam Traver offering in the ninth for Galion’s lone run.
“In my second at bat I just got under it a little bit, but I knew I was on him,” Winand said. “Then in the ninth I got ahead in the count. At 2-0, I was looking for a fastball and tried to put my best swing on it.”
Offensive Woes: Winand was the lone bright spot on a night when the Graders (6-21) struck out six times, grounded into two double plays and left eight runners stranded.
“We just took too many fastballs. Our approach at the plate wasn’t good,” Galion manager Taylore Baker said. “We came out flat. It was just not a good effort from top to bottom.”
The Mariners (15-11) scored a run in the second and added two more in the third on Noah Sadler’s two-run home run. Grand Lake extended its lead to 5-0 in the fifth on Tyler Paulsen’s fourth homer of the season, a two-run tape-measure shot to left.
Matthew Berler’s three-run double in the ninth gave Grand Lake an 8-0 lead.
Solid Start: Traver went 8.1 innings before giving up Winand’s solo shot in the ninth. He gave up seven hits and walked one.
“I feel like every pitcher who throws against us does a good job of throwing strikes,” Baker said. “They are getting ahead, which allows them to work the count and throw their pitches.”
Record Night: The announced attendance of 3,251 was a Heddleson Field record.
