Lion hitters continue to pound the baseball

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers WE HAVE LIFTOFF—Oaks Christian senior Nick Pann crushes a pitch during a Tri-Valley League contest last week vs. Oak Park. The Oaks Christian baseball team is trying to slug its way to a Tri-Valley League championship.

Opposing pitchers have found little room for error when facing the Lions' offense this season.

OCHS entered the week hitting .393 as a team, and the starting lineup featured five players batting above .460.

"Our offense, as a whole, is doing the job," said first-year head coach Tim Penprase, who spent three years coaching at the junior varsity level before joining the varsity squad.

"Every guy is going up there and hitting the ball," he said.

The Lions were 8-6 overall and 5-1 in the TVL prior to Wednesday's league showdown against Carpinteria. The two ballclubs play again Friday afternoon at Carpinteria.

Senior catcher Hunter Kosmala leads the Lions' attack with a team-best .536 average. He also has 12 RBI and six doubles despite missing three games while visiting China for a mission trip during spring break.

In addition to his hitting, Kosmala has played an important role guiding the Oaks Christian pitching staff, which features a pair of sophomore starters at the top of the rotation.

"As a senior, (Kosmala) has had to show those guys the ropes and keep them in line a little bit," Penprase said. "He's been able to continue that leadership at the plate as well."

One of the sophomores Kosmala mentors is middle infielder and pitcher Drew Hacker.

Possessing one of the great baseball names of all-time, Hacker owns an impressive .469 average with 16 runs scored, 17 RBI, 10 stolen bases and a pair of home runs.

From the mound, he's posted a 4-2 record with a 5.06 ERA.

According to Penprase, Hacker is a tireless worker on the diamond. The youngster plays second base or shortstop when he's not pitching.

"Hacker is an incredible kid," the coach said. "He'll stay in the batting cage hours after practice and hit 1,000 balls off the tee. The kid can do it all."

Senior right fielder/second baseman George Youmans also missed a few games while visiting China with Kosmala, but it didn't seem to slow his bat down too much, either.

Youmans, a .500 hitter, leads the Lions with three home runs and has 16 RBI.

Other top hitters for OCHS include sophomore first baseman Trevor Gretzky (.468 average, 15 runs), sophomore center fielder Evan Ocello (.469 average), senior third baseman Nick Pann (.390 average, 17 RBI, two home runs), senior leftfielder Kevin Leonard (.372 average, 14 RBI) and junior shortstop Sean McCarthy (.395 average, 12 runs).

Oaks Christian's pitching staff hasn't been nearly as consistent as the team's hitting.

With a 5.27 combined ERA, the Lions have had trouble keeping opposing hitters in check.

Sophomore Travis Radke, however, has worked well as the squad's No. 1 starter. In a teamhigh 34 2/3 innings pitched, Radke's posted a 4-2 record with a 3.23 ERA.

"Our team ERA is higher than I'd like it to be, but considering how young our starters are, I think they're doing a good job," Penprase said.

"They're certainly doing much better than they were at the beginning of the season. I think they're learning a lot."

In the next two weeks, Oaks Christian has a pair of important two-game series against Malibu and St. Bonaventure.