When South Callaway's Peyton Leeper clubbed a home run on the game's very first pitch, it was a sign of things to come for California.
A five-run first inning for the Bulldogs, followed by a four-run third and an eight-run fifth, all added up to a 17-1 loss for the Pintos (3-2) in a run-rule-shortened game Thursday night, March 31.
"They're state-ranked for a reason," said California coach Matt Moulder. "They're an excellent hitting ball club. Coach (Heath) Lepper is one of the best hitting instructors at the high school level that I've come across in 20 years, so I expect his teams to hit. But I'm extremely disappointed with how our kids responded. We got down early, and we kind of laid down."
South Callaway came into this one with a 4-1 record and ranked ninth in Class 3. The team showed that it belonged at that ranking immediately. After Leeper's leadoff homer, singles from Kaden Helsel and Dillon Stone set the table for the Bulldogs; and Grayson Peneston, Dylan Lepper and Ryan Edler all drove in runs to make it 5-0 before the Pintos even stepped up to the plate.
"We came out ready to play," Bulldogs head coach Heath Lepper said. "It's always good when you lead off the game with a first-pitch home run. That set the tone and I think our boys continued to work hard and do the things that it takes to score 17 runs."
Though Pintos starter Jackson Trachsel settled down with a perfect second frame after a rough first inning, California couldn't muster any offense to speak of through the first few innings. Peneston, who went 3-for-4 a the dish with a pair of RBI, also excelled on the mound for the Bulldogs. The junior mowed down the first seven hitters he faced before allowing a single to Greg Schroeter in the bottom of the third. In the winning effort, Peneston went five innings, allowing one run on four hits and striking out three.
"These boys work on everything all the time," Lepper said. "That's what we talked about after the ballgame. It doesn't matter what the score was; we work on our initial leads, our second leads and the way we round the bag. Our boys are communicating better now, and when you get some success early, that really drives home the fact that all their hard work is paying off."
The bats going near-silent on Thursday was uncharted territory for a Pintos squad that put up a combined 35 runs in its previous three games. For all the struggles against South Callaway, a run of three straight singles by Hunter Heimericks, Jacob Wolken and Jon Pardoe produced the team's lone run in the bottom of the fifth, and could be a building block moving forward.
While Trachsel and reliever Brayden Ash had relatively rough outings on the mound, both flashed potential as well in this game, and that's something that figures to be of value to Moulder as he sorts through a roster that currently boasts eight to 10 pitchers.
"We're just throwing (pitchers) out there and giving them opportunities to see who steps up," Moulder said. "To this point we've had a couple kids who've thrown some nice balls and we'll probably start two more kids on Saturday that have not started a game yet and see how they respond. We have to have more than one or two, certainly."
In its third game this week, California's fortunes were completely flipped. After winning by 10-plus runs on Monday and Tuesday, the Pintos were on the wrong side of the coin against South Callaway. With a doubleheader Saturday at Mexico, the question now for Moulder's group is simply how they will bounce back.
"It's a tough week for us, but we have to understand that that effort is not acceptable and we have to learn from it and move forward and turn the page," Moulder said. "We're going to be persistent, we're going to be fierce and we're going to compete every second we're out there and use it as a learning opportunity."