Clay baseball program wins 1,000th game

Reaching a major milestone within the historical past of a program is the matter of executing on the little issues.

These little issues could be bodily — corresponding to fielding routine groundballs or grinding out productive at-bats.

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They are often psychological as properly — when it comes to exhibiting persistence, sacrificing for a standard aim and coming to the sector with a optimistic angle.

The 2026 Clay Panthers’ baseball program has both carried out in all of these areas all year long or gotten progressively higher in them day by day.

It is resulted in what’s one in every of Clay’s finest seasons so far, which has included a 20-6 general document, a No. 5 state rating and wins in 15 out of its final 18 video games.

The newest win, an 8-5 triumph for Clay over the Racine Southern Tornadoes’ baseball program on Friday night, was additional particular.

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Overcoming a 4-2 deficit after three innings of play, the Panthers hung a six-spot within the fourth body of labor and by no means trailed from that time onward en path to acquiring program victory No. 1,000 Friday night in Rosemount.

The victory marked one other aim checked off the checklist for Kylon Crabtree’s group, who entered the spring with the aim of checking off 1,000 wins on its thoughts after receiving useful info from Clay baseball assistant coach and Clay Junior-Senior Excessive historical past trainer Zack Fryman.

“It is a fantastic feeling,” Crabtree stated. “You’ll be able to’t actually describe how good it feels as a result of it is a once-in-a-lifetime alternative. I really had no thought about it till early within the season. My assistant coach, Zack Fryman, obtained into the historical past books and began going again, and as soon as we added the whole lot up, we realized how shut we had been to that milestone. That made the boys actually push for that. They used that as some motivation, and set it as a aim, saying, ‘Hey, let’s go get 20 wins, and get 1,000 (program wins) this 12 months.”

Now, Clay’s not solely obtained 20 wins for the season and 1,000 wins within the historical past of this system, however has a possibility to perform far more than that.

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With its 20-win season within the bag, the 2026 Clay squad is simply the fourth staff within the historical past of this system, relationship again to the beginning of baseball at Clay in 1940, that has received 20 video games in a season, and the primary for the reason that 2019 Clay squad to perform the feat.

By successful its twentieth recreation on Friday, Clay matched that 2019 staff in addition to the 1954 group for the second-most victories in a single-season in program historical past. Profitable only one extra recreation in 2026 would enable Clay to match the 1949 squad, a bunch coached by longtime head baseball coach Kinney Lengthy, a 2004 Clay Corridor of Fame inductee who received 408 video games, 16 convention titles, and three district championships in his 30 seasons from 1940 to 1970.

Since Lengthy’s retirement from the place following the 1970 season, Clay has remained aggressive within the sport, and received district championships in 1987 beneath Dick McCleese and 2003 beneath Mark Robinson.

This season’s group might be on observe to win a district title for the primary time in 23 years.

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Throughout its 15 wins over an 18-game stretch, Clay has taken down state ranked foes in No. 2 OHSBCA Division VII Inexperienced (4-0) and No. 12 OHSBCA Division V Valley (7-6) on the street. The Panthers additionally defeated archrival Notre Dame by a 4-3 depend in 9 innings on April 24 at dwelling.

“You do not know what to anticipate early on within the 12 months, however these guys haven’t disillusioned and never let up for the reason that starting,” Crabtree stated. “While you do have a younger staff, you must allow them to go show what they will do. We knew they’d the potential, however they’ve proved it from Recreation 1. They’ve come out on a mission. They arrive out and play, they arrive out and compete, and it is only a nice group of boys to be round.”

As Clay has gone on its tear towards turning into one of many state’s most highly-respected items, the Panthers have garnered extra respect within the course of. The Panthers have received seven video games by mercy rule since April 14, however have additionally gone 4-2 in video games determined by three runs or much less in the identical span of time.

Clay’s solely losses since April 14 are setbacks to OHSAA Division V foes Portsmouth (4-2) and Northwest (6-3) in addition to a loss at OHSBCA No. 8 South Webster (11-2).

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“You’ll be able to’t actually clarify how that chemistry simply grows among the many staff — it is simply one thing that you must witness,” Crabtree stated. “Witnessing it in individual and seeing a bunch of youngsters which have totally different backgrounds and hobbies come collectively as one once they all step into not solely our dugout, however the visiting dugouts, and put the whole lot else apart and have one aim in thoughts — to play and compete collectively — is terrific. The happiest I have been is seeing them consider in one another. It is not simply been one or two guys — it has been a collective group of a complete staff that has sacrificed and put their very own emotions apart and has accomplished what’s finest for our staff.”

Due to their very own mindsets, Clay now sits inside two video games from establishing the brand new all-time mark for wins in a season, as solely the 1949 squad, which took the sector 76 years in the past, has received over 20 video games in a single marketing campaign.

Breaking the aforementioned district title drought additionally sits inside attain, and even the 82-year drought of advancing to a state semifinal — a feat that solely Lengthy’s 1944 group has ever accomplished from a baseball standpoint at Clay — is not unfathomable, both.

All of these achievement will surely thrill the parents in Rosemount and Clay Township because the cathartic environment behind what could be accomplished throughout the program appears to develop with every passing recreation and pitch.

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“Our neighborhood has accomplished nothing however present up, time and time once more,” Crabtree stated. “An enormous thanks goes out to each individual. You’re employed onerous to get your staff to purchase in, however when you can even get the neighborhood to purchase into a bunch of fellows, and they’re collectively coming as much as help a bunch that is working onerous, it is simply not like the rest. The neighborhood, the mother and father, the households, the grandparents, the aunts and uncles, and all people that involves help these children — it has been nothing in need of spectacular.”

However whereas particular objectives to shoot for and look ahead towards striving for, the mentality of the Clay baseball program stays one pitch, one play and one recreation at a time.

“It is one recreation at a time,” Crabtree stated. “The boys have set objectives, they usually’re reaching these objectives one recreation at a time. That is the phrase that you must maintain saying — one recreation at a time. They’ve a aim of eclipsing the college document for the variety of wins at Clay, which is 21 wins in a season, so if we’re lucky sufficient to notch two extra wins someplace between now or match play, we will obtain that, and hopefully, even a couple of extra.”