Schmitt shuts out Dragons, 12-0

A day shy of his 34^th birthday, Rangers’ lefty Shawn Schmitt fired a two-hit shutout against the Miami Valley Dragons on Sunday, May 24 at West Carrollton high school. It was the first shutout for the Rangers since last June and the sixth overall in the last six seasons. It was the first shut out tossed by Schmitt in his 75^th game as a Ranger, covering over 387 innings of work!

The Rangers took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second when Jelani Arnold belted a solo home run to left center, the second of his career. Jonmarc Lippincott singled in Shane Fallen with the second run of the game in the bottom of the third. Brad Clark singled in Jacob Robinson and Lippincott to make it 4-0. James Robinson drove in another run to give the Rangers a five-run lead after three innings. Two more scored in the fourth and Shane Fallen stole home as part of a double steal and Clint Wolf singled in Jacob Robinson for a 7-0 advantage. The final tallies came in the bottom of the sixth as the first five batters reached on singles. Jacob and Jonmarc had RBIs in that mix. Brad Clark hit a sac fly and an errant throw plated the final two runs of the game.

The Rangers move to 5-0 on the season and will have a true test to their stature with a matchup against the Beavercreek Sox on Sunday, May 31st.

Offensive highlights: Jacob Robinson 3-for-3, 3 runs, SB; Jonmarc Lippincott 3-for-4, 2RBI; Clint Wolf 3-for-4, 2 runs, RBI; Brad Clark 1-for-3 sac, 3RBI; Shane Fallen 2-for-2, 3 runs, 2 SB; Jelani Arnold 1-for-4 HR.

Historical notes: The Rangers franchise recorded its 191^st win today. Shawn is now 25 strikeouts shy of the MVABL all-time strikeout mark. Clint’s 3 hits give him 300 career hits as a Ranger. Jonmarc is 7 hits shy of 500 as a Ranger. Jelani’s HR was his 99^th career hit as a Ranger. Brothers Jacob and James Robinson are each 3 runs shy of scoring 100 career runs. Aaron is 6 at-bats short of 500 career at-bats.