One of the items on the list of goals for the Rolla High School baseball team for the 2009 campaign was capture the Ozark Conference championship.
One more victory and the Bulldogs wrap that one up, no questions asked.
The Bulldogs clinched a share of the league championship on Saturday afternoon by shutting out Springfield Glendale 3-0 in a make-up conference game on the First Community National Bank (FCNB) Field at the Bray Sports Complex.
However the ‘Dogs are a bit selfish; they want the league title to themselves. And they can earn just that on Tuesday by ending their league schedule with a win over Springfield Hillcrest. Rolla is slated to travel to Springfield Tuesday to take on Hillcrest (4:30 p.m.).
Rolla, ranked No. 2 in the Missouri Class 4 state poll, is currently 19-3 overall and 7-1 in conference play. Hillcrest handed RHS one of its three losses in a tournament earlier this season. Senior Chris Bowe (6-1) is scheduled to pitch for Rolla Tuesday.
A Hillcrest victory over RHS Tuesday would leave the Bulldogs in a three-way tie for the league title, along with Glendale and Joplin. Glendale and Lebanon shared the league title last year, with Rolla one game behind.
RHS is slated to host Salem tonight at FCNB Field on RHS Senior Night, starting at 4:30 p.m. The Bulldogs are slated to end the regular season Thursday at Licking in another non-league game.
Rolla’s hard-throwing lefthander, senior Dalton Friend, made sure that the Glendale Falcons wouldn’t rain on the Bulldog party Saturday. Friend flirted with a no-hitter, limiting the Falcons to just one infield hit over seven innings.
Also included in Friend’s one-hitter was four walks, one hit batsman and 12 strikeouts. Friend, who has drawn several major league scouts to his last few starts, is now 7-0 on the season with a 0.18 ERA. In 39 innings he has fanned 89 batters.
It was Friend’s first 7-inning effort since tweaking his throwing shoulder while playing the outfield three weeks ago. Saturday’s effort indicates Friend is fully back to his form of earlier this season.
The lone hit for Glendale off Friend Saturday came from leadoff hitter Casey Goss in the first inning, as he hit a grounder to the left side of the infield and beat the throw.
After that...a lot of Falcon goose eggs.
“Going into the Glendale game they had a loss and we had a loss,” said RHS head coach Jason Swearingen. “We controlled our own destiny.
