UNION CITY – With tournament play drawing near, the Mississinawa Valley Blackhawks appear to be finding their stride at exactly the right time. Backed by timely hitting, aggressive offense, and highlight-reel defense, the Blackhawks rolled to a convincing 10-3 late-season WOAC victory over Preble Shawnee.
Mississinawa Valley has now won nine of its last twelve games and continued its offensive tear by collecting 13 hits and plating 10 runs against the Arrows. The Blackhawks entered the contest with four players ranked among the top twelve batting averages in the conference, and that offensive depth was on full display.
“That is one thing we have done all year, hit the ball,” said Blackhawk coach Kyler Guillozet.
The Blackhawks spread the offense throughout the lineup with nine different players recording at least one hit and three players finishing with multiple hits.
While Preble Shawnee managed only five hits, the Arrows stayed competitive at times by taking advantage of seven combined walks issued by Mississinawa Valley pitchers.
“Going into the tournament we are telling the guys we have to quit walking people,” Guillozet said. “We will let teams like that hang around. You can’t do that at tournament time.”
Even with the walks, the Blackhawks repeatedly shut down potential scoring opportunities with outstanding defensive plays. Multiple sliding and diving catches robbed the Arrows of hits and helped preserve momentum throughout the game.
Mississinawa Valley’s recent stretch of play has showcased a team growing more confident each game, and Guillozet believes only minor adjustments are needed heading into postseason play.
“We are going to focus on throwing more strikes heading toward the tournament,” said Guillozet. “Other than that, I wouldn’t change much at the plate or anything like that.”
Caleb Spradling earned the win on the mound, improving to four victories on the season.
Offensively, Cole McGlothlin led the way by going 3-for-4 with two runs scored and an RBI. Bently Manning finished 2-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI, while Kyle Wehrkamp went 2-for-2 and crossed the plate three times.
