So far, the Warriors have been up to the task, posting a 12-2 mark and entering the state polls at No. 2 in Division I.
Lebanon received three first-place votes and 97 points to sit behind Gahanna Lincoln in the first Ohio High School Coaches Association state poll.
“It’s a nice honor to be recognized in a state poll,” Kindell said. “But it’s only the middle of April, so we need to stay focused on the tough week we have with league games against Northmont and then the Wendy’s Spring Classic (April 21) where we play Gahanna Lincoln.”
Lebanon opened the week with a 11-1 mercy-rule win over Northmont on Monday to improve to 4-0 in the Greater Western Ohio Conference National West and stay undefeated against teams from Ohio.
Lebanon’s lone losses came against Louisville Ballard and Oshkosh (Wisc.) in a weekend tournament in Louisville April 15.
The Warriors also have a pair of wins over state-ranked teams, 2-1 over Greenville (sixth, D-II) to open the season and 10-4 over sixth-ranked Lakota East on April 7.
Alexis Strother led the Warriors over defending regional champ Mason on April 2. Strother got the win in the circle and also clubbed a two-run home run in the 2-0 win.
Until April 8, the loss to Lebanon was the lone blemish on the Mason schedule, but the Comets dropped a doubleheader to the state’s top-ranked D-II team, Hebron Lakewood, on the road, falling 2-0 in game one and 2-1 in extra innings in game two.
Six of Mason’s 10 wins have been shutouts, including 6-0 over Greenville.
The Comets are currently tied with Lakota East for the top spot in the Greater Miami Conference at 7-0.
It has been a wild ride for Kings through the first 12 games.
The Knights are 8-4 overall, but 5-0 in the Eastern Cincinnati Conference.
Kings, which has had eight games end early because of the mercy rule, claimed a 2-1, 10-inning win over Little Miami and dropped a crazy 14-12 decision against Mount Notre Dame.
“We had to replace seven seniors from the 2016 class,” Kings coach Mary Ellen Bonner said. “I feel we are doing well and everyone is accepting their roles and trying to work as a team.”
Little Miami could easily be 10-4 instead of 8-6 after dropping two marathon games.
In addition to the 10-inning affair with Kings, the Panthers also dropped a nine-inning decision to Wilminton 8-7.
The Panthers are 5-1 in the Southwest Ohio Conference and have ridden the hot bat of Kaleigh Kilburn and the pitching of Tayler Clark.
Kilburn is hitting over .500 with three home runs and a slugging percentage over 1.000 while Clark is 5-0 in the circle.
The Panthers are hitting close to .400 as a team through the first 12 games.
Baseball: The Mason baseball team sits third in the GMC with a 7-3 mark and is 10-3 overall.
The Comets opened with four straight wins, including a 7-5 victory over Moeller and a 2-1 success against perennial state power Strongsville.
Mason, however, had its string snapped in a 4-0 loss to Colerain in GMC action.
Mason had another six-game winning streak snapped Monday by Fairfield 5-1.
After dropping its season opener 2-0 to Edgewood, the Lebanon baseball team has run off 11 consecutive wins and sits in first place in the GWOC National at 3-0 after a 5-4 win against Northmont on Monday.
The one-run win was one of three during the 11-game streak by the Warriors, which included a 5-4, extra-inning win over Centerville.
The Warriors began their win streak with a 7-2 win over Little Miami.
Little Miami was 8-4 and 4-3 in the SWOC to sit in third, two games behind Harrison and Ross. “With only three seniors and sometimes starting four sophmores we are very pleased with how our season has started,” coach Matt Craig said.
For the first time, Kings started the season in Florida.
The Knights went 5-1 during a week in Vero Beach and was 4-3 since returning to Ohio.
Kings was 3-3 in ECC play.
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