The Dayton Rangers improved to 3-0 on the season with a 13-9 victory over the Kettering Royals on Sunday, May 3 at Centerville HS.

 

Ryan Meinert got his first start of the season and was rudely greeted with a Shane Page 3-run home run in the top of the first inning. However, Meinert settled down to allow just three more hits over four scoreless innings.

 

Meanwhile, the Rangers answered the Royals’ first inning scoring with a six-spot, highlighted by Brandon Riley’s bases-clearing double and a three-run home run by Ben Schubert. In the second inning, Jonmarc Lippincott singled with one out and was replaced on the basepath by Steve Marshall, who promptly stole second base. Kody Barth then doubled home Marshall to give the Rangers a 7-3 lead.

 

The Rangers added another run in the fourth on a sac fly from Marshall. In the bottom of the fifth, Todd Peck smacked an opposite-field two-run single and Marshall blooped a two-run single to right for an 11-3 advantage. A laser-beam homer from Brennen Glass in the sixth made it 12-3, marking the first time in Rangers history that a player homered in three straight games to start a season.

 

The Royals mounted a comeback in the seventh as Chris Flaherty singled a home a pair of runs. Derek Barnhart plated a run in the 8th. Flaherty added a two-run double in the ninth and Shane Page scored another to round out the run total for the day.

 

Meinert threw five innings and struck out five to earn the win. Joe Becker went the final four to earn his fourth career save – a Rangers record.