Prep Baseball Report

Division II Team Of The Week: Week 5 - Miami Trace


Bruce Hefflinger
PBR Ohio Senior Writer

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Division II Team Of The Week: Week 5 - Miami Trace

WASHINGTON COURT HOUSE - The wins just keep on coming for Miami Trace, the Prep Baseball Report Division II Team of the Week.

Two shutouts during play last week upped the record of the Panthers to 18-1 and Miami Trace has now pushed its winning streak to 14 with victories over Eastern and Southeastern Local this week.

“Both our pitching and defense have been really good so far this season,” pointed out head coach Rob Smith, whose squad has seven shutouts on the year including a 5-0 victory over McClain and 10-0 triumph over Madison Plains this past week. “Hitting has been timely when needed.”

Miami Trace, which has 120 wins over the past seven seasons and has captured three league titles over the last five campaigns, had high hopes entering 2021 according to Smith.

“We were expecting to have a big season with veteran leadership,” Smith admitted. “The kids have worked extremely hard in the weightroom the past two off-seasons and felt confident going into the season.”

Junior southpaw Connor Bucher, who threw a three-hitter with 10 strikeouts in the win over McClain, is 6-0 with a save, fanning 67 in 41 innings. Hunter McBee, a senior left-hander committed to Mount Vernon Nazarene, stands 4-1 with 30 Ks in 23 innings after throwing a shutout at Madison Plains.

Junior Gabe Campagna brings depth on the hill with a 3-0 record, two saves and 35 strikeouts in 25 frames while Dylan Bernard, a Shawnee State commit and the 31st-rated 2021 right-handed pitcher in Ohio, is 1-0.

“We expected our senior pitchers to be extremely good going into the season but it has been our junior pitchers who have carried the way for the most part,” pointed out Smith.

A trio of Panthers are batting better than .400 led by senior second baseman Brayden Osborne at .458. Bucher is averaging .433 with Campagna .408. McBee is hitting .397 while senior center fielder Josh Gilmore is at .381.

“To continue our success we need to be able to score more consistently and continue with good pitching and defense,” noted Smith, who was head coach at Washington Court House during a 2000 state championship season.

Miami Trace, ranked fourth in the state in D-II, puts a 14-game winning streak on the line Thursday against Unioto, the 13th-rated team in Ohio in Division II. The lone defeat by Miami Trace came on April 7 against Jackson (13-1), a loss that was avenged 12 days later by a 7-2 score.

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