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Ohio Diamond Notes: April 21-27

A ball to the face did not stop Zack Gross from a big week for Elmwood. Four stitches were required after getting hit in the face while batting on Monday, but a day later the senior was back on the field against Otsego and then pitched on Wednesday in a win over Leipsic. Gross did not allow an earned run in 6.2 innings with seven strikeouts to beat the 16th-ranked Division VII squad in Ohio.

The senior outfielder batted .556 on the week with a double, home run, five RBIs, five runs, four walks, two HBP and a .733 OBP. Gross added seven stolen bases to put his season total up to 19 to go along with a .457 batting average, .592 OBP and 18 runs scored. On the mound, Gross has surrendered only one earned run in 19.2 innings while winning all three decisions for the No. 12 Division VI team in the state.

That is just one of the players that had big weeks in the Buckeye State. Read on for more … 

TWO-WAY STANDOUTS

Bryson Wittmer continues to be one of the top players in the state this season.

The Milan Edison junior reached base on six of seven plate appearances, hitting two home runs, one of which was a grand slam, and a single while walking three times for the third-ranked Division V team in Ohio. A center fielder when not pitching, Wittmer had five RBIs and four runs scored and has now touched home plate 25 times while driving in 18 on the season with six homers, 11 walks and a .489 batting average.

But it is on the mound where the future is for the top-rated 2026 left-handed pitcher in Ohio. The Louisville commit threw a six-inning no-hitter against Huron, fanning 14 and walking five. The No. 21 junior LHP in the nation is currently 3-0 this season with a 0.32 ERA, striking out 48 in 22 innings on the hill. 

There were other players also worth noting that came up big at the dish as well as pitching this week…

- Another inning, another save for Colin Coblentz, the Hiland reliever who fanned one for his third save of the season. The senior left-hander has now struck out five and not given up a hit in three innings on the mound for the No. 1 D-VI team in Ohio. At the plate, the 35th-rated 2025 outfielder in Ohio went 5-10 with two home runs, six RBIs, four runs, two walks and two stolen bases. The Malone commit is batting .500 on the season with three homers and 14 runs scored.

- Aidan Hill went 4-8 at the dish with four runs batted in this week while continuing his strong season on the hill. The James A Garfield senior right-hander fanned 20 in two games while picking up a win over Struthers to improve to 3-1. The California University of Pennsylvania recruit has a 0.457 ERA with 63 Ks this season while also batting .474 with 15 RBIs, six doubles and a triple. 

- Jake Huffman tossed a five inning no-hitter with 10 Ks against John Hay and now has 22 strikeouts in 12.2 frames on the season with a 2-0 record. The Andrews Osborne Academy senior also stood out at the plate this week going 8-11 with 10 RBIs, seven runs, four doubles and a triple.

- Markus Robinson of Bloom-Carroll hit his fifth home run in six games the same day he fanned nine in six innings on the mound while giving up one earned run for Ohio’s ninth-ranked D-IV squad.

- Brody Weiler earned a win on the mound striking out four and walking one in 4.1 innings with no earned runs allowed. The junior left-hander also went 7-14 with a triple, five RBIs, two runs, a HBP and a stolen base helping Teays Valley enter the Division II Power Rankings at No. 17.

- Xander Wilson was 6-9 with two home runs and two doubles, driving home eight and scoring seven times, while also reaching base on four walks and stealing two bases. The Hardin Northern senior, who pitches and plays center field, also picked up a win on the mound for the 15th-ranked D-VII Polar Bears with eight Ks and one walk in five innings, allowing five hits and two earned runs to beat Ridgemont. 

- Marengo Highland beat Galion twice to jump to 10th in this week’s Division IV ratings while dropping Galion to 11th. Zach Church struck out seven and walked one in six innings of two-hit shutout pitching in a 3-1 win. The fourth-rated junior catcher in Ohio also batted .444 for the week with a .615 OBP. Kort Sears fanned 10 in 7.1 innings during the week allowing one earned run while beating Galion. The senior 3B/RHP also hit .455 on the week with a .533 OBP.

HOT STICKS

While pitching is believed to be his ticket to college, Grant Jolly is definitely getting the job done at the plate.

The Wapakoneta senior went 12-18 this past week with 11 runs scored, hitting three doubles and a home run while walking three times. The Marshall commit, who picked up his third pitching win of the year during the week, also drove in six and stole three bases.

The 20th-ranked 2025 in Ohio is now 19-29 on the season with 20 runs, 11 RBIs and eight stolen bases.

There were other standouts with the bat worth mentioning as well…

- Caleb Smith of Rittman belted four home runs and drove in 10 during a 5-12 week that included three walks and a hit by pitch. A left-handed hitting first baseman, the Mount Union commit is batting .409 on the season with 19 RBIs.

- Ben Voegele had a .700 OBP, going 5-10 with two home runs, two doubles, two walks and four RBIs while stealing three bases for Ross. The fourth-ranked senior shortstop in Ohio, Voegele is a Cincinnati signee.

- Tiffin Calvert went 3-0 on the week and Connor Moyer was a big reason why. The junior catcher hit four home runs, drove in eight and scored five times with six hits in 11 at-bats for the top-rated Division VII team. Moyer, who is hitting .429 on the season with 18 RBIs, also threw out three baserunners.

- Cooper Russell hit a pair of home runs, including a grand slam, for No. 7 D-II Lakewood. The 27th-rated 2026 shortstop in the state had six RBIs, scored six runs, walked five times and stole three bases. Russell hit .444 on the week and now has a .421 batting average for the season with a .519 OBP, .789 slugging percentage and 1.309 OPS while contributing 22 runs and 19 RBIs.

- Luke Sivon was 8-10 with three walks this week for Perry, scoring eight runs and driving in six with a home run and double. The senior outfielder has now crossed home plate 19 times and stole 13 bases while going 21-43 at the plate.

- Carter Wheeldin continued his big season at the plate going 6-11 with six RBIs, five runs, two doubles and four stolen bases. The senior shortstop is carrying a .432 average with 16 runs and 16 stolen bases while bringing home 19 runs for Caldwell, the seventh-rated team in Ohio in Division VI.

- An inside-the-park home run highlighted a 4-7 week for Garrett Carpenter, who drove in three and scored three times for Cambridge. The junior SS now has a .525 OBP.

- Junior outfielder Owen Long has been a big spark for CHCA with a .542 average, 22 runs scored and 11 stolen bases. Long was spectacular this past week with 10 hits in 13 at-bats, hitting a double and triple with seven runs, three RBIs and three stolen bases.

- Max Rubins had a big week for the top-ranked Division III team in the state. The Butler senior, who has not committed an error all season at shortstop, was 7-11 with five runs, five walks and a triple for the No. 2 team in the Prep Baseball Upper Division Power Ratings.

- Seven was the number this week for Max Rapp of Portsmouth West. The senior outfielder had seven hits in 14 at-bats with seven runs and seven RBIs, while also contributing three stolen bases and a double.

STRONG PITCHING

Two games without allowing an earned run dropped Ashton Snyder’s ERA to 0.991 on the season. The Norwayne senior struck out 14 in a 3-1 win over Smithville and completed the week with a one-hitter versus Orrville in the Carmichael Classic, striking out 11 and walking just one in a 6-0 victory.

The 24th-ranked 2025 catcher in Ohio put down 25 on strikes with just one free pass in 14 innings this week, giving up just four hits and a .089 batting average against.

The Malone University commit has 50 Ks in 35.1 innings on the year. 

There were more good outings reported on the hill as well this week …

 - A 10-strikeout and no-walk performance in a four-hitter against Jerome pushed Carter Elliott to 3-1 on the season for Olentangy Berlin, the No. 8 team in the state in Division I. The 69th-ranked junior right-handed pitcher in Ohio did not give up a run and now carries a 1.33 ERA on the season with 31 strikeouts vs seven walks.

- Tony Caracciolo shut down Walsh Jesuit on three hits in 6.1 innings, not permitting a run in helping Toledo St. John’s to the victory over the sixth-ranked D-II squad in the state. The uncommitted senior RHP, who is now 2-0, has yet to allow an earned run on the season in 12.1 innings for the No. 13 D-II team in Ohio.

- Logan Ellis threw a one-hit shutout at Valley Forge, not walking a batter with 11 Ks in five innings. The Lakewood senior right-handed pitcher, a Mount Union signee, is now 2-1 with a 1.61 ERA this season, fanning 33 in 17.1 frames.

- Josh Moore did not give up a run against No. 5 D-II Hudson, striking out four in 6.1 innings. The junior RHP has a 0.70 ERA with 16 Ks and four walks in 20 innings while sporting a 3-0 record for Stow Munroe Falls.

- Muskingum commit Tyler Mastro and Brayden Vance both had strong pitching performances for Kettering Fairmont. Mastro, the 23rd-rated senior third baseman in Ohio who had three hits and three stolen bases this week, went seven innings permitting two hits and two earned runs with eight Ks. Vance, the 63rd-ranked junior RHP in the state, tossed a two-hit shutout with 10 strikeouts and two walks. For the season, Vance has fanned 37 in 24 frames.

YOUTH SHINES

A 10-RBI week pushed the season total to 21 for Aidan McMillan of Wooster. The 11th-ranked sophomore outfielder in the state was 9-15 for the week with eight runs, three doubles, three walks and three stolen bases.

The right fielder has upped his season batting average to .435 for the No. 10 D-III team in the Buckeye state.

There were additional freshmen and sophomores that had nice weeks …

- A dozen stolen bases were part of a 13-24 week for Bronx Carpenter of Symmes Valley. The freshman, who is carrying a .404 average on the season, scored nine runs and drove in eight while hitting a double.

- Riley Miller of Lima Senior stole eight bases and brought home seven in a strong 7-14 week at the dish. The sophomore catcher scored seven runs, walked three times and hit a double for the Spartans, and now has 15 runs, 15 stolen bases, 11 RBIs and eight free passes this season.

- Kellen Frankart had a win and a save for Hopewell-Loudon, striking out 17 in nine innings. The left-handed hitting sophomore also drove in eight and scored four times, going 5-12 at the plate with a triple and stolen base for Ohio’s No. 14 D-VI team.

- The stick was hot for Graham Harmon this week, with the Lakota sophomore shortstop scoring 11 runs while going 6-13 with seven walks. Harmon had five stolen bases, three RBIs and a home run, recording a .693 slugging percentage and .650 OBP for the week.

- The 13th-rated 2027 southpaw in the state showed off his stuff against an out-of-state foe. Jackson Comer did not surrender a hit in four innings of shutout ball against Bishop Ireton, Va. The Lakewood LHP is 4-0 on the year with a 0.894 ERA, striking out 22 and allowing just five hits in 15.2 innings.

THE TEAMS

What a week it was for Anthony Wayne, which beat Toledo St. Francis 9-1 on Monday, then went on the road to knock off Toledo St. John’s 3-1 behind a four-hitter from Drew Madalinski in his first varsity appearance.

The Generals, ranked second in Ohio in Division II, then rallied from a 7-0 deficit for an 8-7 victory over Orchard Lake St. Mary’s, the number one team in Michigan in Division 2 heading into last week. Three pitchers made their varsity debut in that game for Anthony Wayne, which scored four runs in the sixth and four in the seventh for the walkoff victory.

“The OLSM game was a true team effort,” explained Anthony Wayne head coach Ryan Donley, whose squad improved to 8-2 on the season through last week. “I was proud of our guys for staying in the fight and continuing to play the game the right way. It was a really good ‘growing up’ moment for our squad.”

- Hiland is another state power that had a nice week, with the top-ranked Division VI team in Ohio beating D-3 No. 17 Hoban once and D-5 Ridgewood twice.

- Hopewell-Loudon is 13-2 on the season and ranked 14th in Division VI despite three starters being out and the scheduled ace pitcher throwing just two innings. 

- Toledo Christian has overcome injuries to win five of its last six to enter this week at 6-6. The team’s pitching ace/1B/cleanup hitter was lost to a UCL injury a week before the season and the number two pitcher has been out since week two.

- Division III No. 3 Wapakoneta outscored opponents 41-10 this past week. The Redskins host D-III No. 2 Defiance on Wednesday.

- In moving to 13-2 on the season, North Ridgeville outscored three opponents 25-1 this week.

- Caldwell was 11-0 before falling 4-3 to Toronto in the OVAC championship game.

A Look Back At The 2024 Season:

To view the 2024 Team Previews, click here.

To view the 2024 Ohio Spring HS Report, click here.

To view the OHSAA Baseball Tournament Roundup, click below.

• State Final Four Roundup
• 10th Annual OHSAA Final Four All-Tournament Team

To View the 2024 Prep Baseball All-State Teams, click here.

To view the 2024 Preseason All-State Teams, click below.

To view the Weekly Team Rankings, click below:

• Final Rankings | Update 6 | Update 5 | Update 4 | Update 3 | Update 2 | Update 1 | Preseason

To view the 2024 Ohio Spring Scout Blog, click here.

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