Jim Mashek

CORADINI WILL TAKE THE MOUND FOR SOUTH’s HOME GAME AGAINST FRANKLIN-SIMPSON

GLASGOW — South Warren High School’s baseball team has bolted to a 12-4 start with a .343 team batting average, plenty of available arms and a senior class of seven players intent on getting back to the KHSAA State Tournament in Lexington.

Even after one of those seniors, WKU signee Ethan Reynolds, has been sidelined by a hand injury that will require surgery later this week.

South Warren traveled to Glasgow’s rebuilt Richardson Stadium — the original was destroyed by a fire at the Gorin Park city facility on July 8, 2022 — for a non-district game on Monday evening. Sophomore right-hander Camden Page worked the first three innings on the mound and the Spartans collected 12 hits at the plate as South Warren cruised to a 9-3 victory over the Scotties on a cool, windy afternoon at the ballpark.

“I just tried to hit the strike zone and keep us in front,” Page said.

The 6-foot-3, 200-pound pitcher, the heir apparent to departing quarterback Bryce Button with the tradition-rich South Warren football team, also plays basketball before stepping on the baseball field with the Spartans, who reached the quarterfinals of the KHSAA State Tournament in Lexington in 2023.

Page remained unbeaten in three decisions and also contributed at the plate, belting a leadoff double off the fence in right-center field in the top of the fourth inning. That was the turning point of the game, too, as his undersized sophomore catcher, 5-foot-10, 160-pound Joseph Fentress unloaded a three-run home run, also to right-center field, as the Spartans built a commanding 6-1 lead.

Still, veteran South coach Chris Gage was less than pleased with some sloppy defensive play, meeting with his team for about 15 minutes in shallow left field before the team returned to Bowling Green after the game.

The Spartans will open KHSAA 14th District play next week against Bowling Green High School, and the four-team district includes THREE state-ranked squads in South, Bowling Green and Greenwood.

South Warren (12-4) will play host to nearby rival Franklin-Simpson (9-6) on Tuesday, with a first pitch scheduled for 5:30 p.m.

“It looks like we’ll be going with (senior left-hander) Mikey Coradini for the Franklin-Simpson game,” Gage said. “Tucker Sears will be catching.”

Coradini has compiled a 3-1 record, with a 1.11 ERA, in four starts with the Spartans this season.

Ethan Reynolds, South Warren’s multi-purpose star on his way to the nationally ranked WKU program, has played in just eight games after being diagnosed with a broken hamate bone in his left wrist. It’s a common injury for hitters, WKU coach Marc Rardin said, and Reynolds is hopeful to be back on the field for the Spartans before too long.

“I’m having surgery with Doctor (Keith) Morrison on Wednesday,” Reynolds said.

South Warren shortstop/pitcher Griffin Rardin, the son of the WKU coach and another Hilltoppers signee, drove in the game’s first run on a sacrifice fly in the first inning. Griffin Rardin also delivered a triple to the fence in left-center field before scoring in the top of the fifth inning, extending the Spartans’ lead to 7-1.

Rardin also made a heads-up play to retire the Scotties’ Steven Garrett after Glasgow put up two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning. South’s Owen Perkins replaced teammate Camden Page on the mound in the fourth, handing off to teammate Jacob Lobb, who pitched the final two innings in the victory.

“Griff (Rardin) has really stepped up in the leadership role,” South coach Chris Gage said. “Both by saying, and doing.”

Rardin believes the Spartans have the right make-up to make another run at the state tournament, and he’s also pitched in three games as South Warren gets ready for KHSAA 14th District play. The Spartans will play host to Bowling Green (8-5) on Monday before making the trip across town to square off with the Purples on Tuesday at Harold J. Stihl Field on the BGHS campus.

“I’ve just tried to take it one at bat at a time, collecting hits and getting RBI,” Rardin said. “I think we’ve got the pitching. It’s a tough district, and we want to be playing our best baseball for the district tournament (in mid-May at Greenwood High School’s Corey Hart Ballpark).”

Glasgow outfielder Josiah Driver went 4-for-4 at the plate while finishing the game with three stolen bases. Carter Hodges, the Scotties’ starting pitcher, took the loss, falling to 1-2 on the season. Glasgow (5-9 overall) will play host to Bowling Green on Tuesday, with first pitch scheduled for 5:30 p.m.

South Warren catcher Joseph Fentress extended the Spartans’ lead to 5-1 by sending a pitch from Hodges over the fence in right-center field. It was Fentress’ first home run of the season.

“It was a 1-1 pitch and I was looking for the fastball,” Fentress said. “It was up and out a little bit, and I got all of it.”

South Warren outfielder Jaxen Decker went 3-for-4 at the plate with two RBI, while three teammates — Fentress, Justin Capps and John Mosley — each had two hits.

Meanwhile, South Warren’s Camden Page is doing a balancing act, lifting weights with his football teammates before school and hitting the baseball field in the afternoon. Page completed 17 of 24 passes for 139 yards and three touchdowns last fall, as South Warren went 12-2 overall before bowing out in the KHSAA Class 5A state semifinals, a 31-28 loss to Bowling Green at Spartan Stadium.

“I think I’m ready for it, have to budget my time,” Page said.

The Spartans will face Franklin-Simpson (Tuesday) and Warren East (Friday) before opening 14th District play against the Purples next Monday.