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Comets are kings of baseball diamond
(by Steve Novak - May 28, 2009)
Comets are kings of baseball diamond
By STEVE NOVAK
When one looks at the conference record of the Solon baseball team this season, you'll see that the Comets had the zero in the right place.
Solon owned a perfect 9-0 record in the Valley Division of the Northeast Ohio League.
After winning a Division I sectional crown, the Comets' season came to a grinding halt with an 8-7 loss to host Hudson in a district game May 21.
"Our kids represented this school very well throughout the season with great sportsmanship," coach Chuck Chokenea said. "This is probably the best team I have had in 11 years."
The Comets were a prime example of a work in progress. Chokenea said that when many of his seniors were sophomores, the team ended the year with a season record of 13-12. Then, in 2008, Solon finished the year with a record of 16-11.
Chokenea said the team appeared to have learned a lot of lessons from a five-game tournament they played in Florida in the beginning of the season.
"We took a Florida trip early in the season and we had a record of 2-3 against the teams we played down there. There were some very good teams there," he said. "We saw what our issues were. Since we returned, the kids have re-focused themselves to play better baseball. They've really done a lot of it on their own. They've been lifting weights since last November, anticipating what they anticipate to be a good season."
In addition to mowing down conference rivals in the Northeast Ohio League without a loss, the Comets also have recorded several independent victories against some of the top area teams. Solon's victories this year also include over Mentor, St. Ignatius, Elyria, Poland Seminary and Stow.
It seems that facing Division I perennial baseball powers doesn't phase the Comets. Solon blanked St. Ignatius 7-0, as well as splitting a doubleheader with Mentor in which they defeated the Cardinals 15-2 in the nightcap. Later in the season, the Comets defeated Mayfield 6-1.
Chokenea said there were 11 seniors on this year's team, and more than half of them spent some time sharing the pitching duties on the mound.
"I've got six seniors who do a lot of our pitching," he said. "We can insert them in different places. They're interchangeable. They've been competing with each other for more time on the mound, but it's a friendly competition."
Jon Gore led the team in pitching victories, with a record of 5-1 during the regular season. Right behind him was Pat Rongers, who was 3-0 with an earned run average of 1.31.
At the plate, first baseman Bill Gerstenslager batted in the cleanup position for a reason. His batting average was .447 and he had 24 runs batted in during the regular season. Eric Esborn and Justin Parker weren't far behind. Esborn carried a .432 average, while Parker hit at a clip of .426. Solon's third baseman Zach Moss had a .406 average with 19 RBI.
In a game against Warren Harding, Solon rolled to a 12-2 decision for its 15th win of the year. Gore got the pitching decision, and he received help from Moss and Esborn, who each hit home runs. Gerstenslager had two hits in three trips to the plate and he knocked in five runs
The Comets took an early command of the Warren Harding game in the first inning, when they batted around the lineup and put five runs on the scoreboard. The home runs by Moss and Esborn came in the bottom of the sixth inning.
Chokenea was quick to add praise to his assistant coaches. He said that without the help of varsity assistant Ed Bubonics and pitching coach Dan Rodriguez, the team might not have advanced as far as it did. Bubonics is also the conditioning coach and one of the persons responsible guiding the team when they started their weight training last winter.
"It's a senior-based team. Most of us have been playing together for a long time," Gerstenslager said. "There's just good team chemistry."
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