There were some pretty strong winds whipping through Columbus East’s baseball field on Saturday. The host Olympians didn’t need their assistance to blow Fort Wayne Wayne away.
East continued its torrid start to the young season, posting 16-0 and 20-1 victories to secure a doubleheader sweep of the overmatched Generals.
The Olympians (3-0) took a little while to get going in the opener but broke things open with a six-run third inning. After four consecutive walks to open the frame, East got a base hit from Nick Andrie and back-to-back doubles from Joey Back and Jon Crawford to help make it 8-0.
An eight-run fourth was more than enough to seal it against Wayne, which did not collect a hit in the first game.
The Generals did take a brief 1-0 lead in the second contest, but East answered with authority, putting up eight runs in the bottom of the first. Takahiro Yamada had two of the Olympians’ seven hits in the inning, including a triple, on the way to a 4-for-4 game.
“We weren’t as focused as I would have liked that first game,” East coach Jonathan Gratz said. “Game two, though, I think we were more locked in and ready to go.”
A 10-run second inning, capped by a three-run homer from Harry Crider, all but ended the day for Wayne.
With neither game ever really in doubt, the Olympians were able to give several younger players a look, including a handful of freshmen. Julian Greenwell pitched an inning of relief to close out the first game and started in left field in the nightcap.
Having outscored its opponents by a 51-2 margin through the first three games, East figures to get a better sense of how good it really is on Tuesday when it travels north to face Class 4A No. 3 Indianapolis Cathedral.
“It’s hard to tell this early where we are,” Gratz said, “but I think we’ll have a chance to find out on Tuesday.”
Yamada said the Olympians are heading into the Cathedral showdown with a high level of confidence and shouldn’t be fazed by who they’re facing.
“Whoever the opponent is, we just play our game,” he stated.
