Baseball: Knights Look to Turn Tide as Mid-April Approaches

By Devon Douglas and Jordan Schwartzberg

Rosedale, Md. -- CCBC Essex finished 6-9 overall in the month of March and currently sit 8-13, including 4-6 in Region XX Division II. If the regional playoffs started today, the Knights would have the eighth and final seed.  

The Knights bats, however, have shown signs of waking up over the team's last four games, outscoring opponents 31-21 and averaging better than seven runs per game.

With 10 games remaining in the division, CCBC Essex knows now is the time to hit its stride.

Despite the inconsistent start to the season, the Knights have seen some bright spots emerge in The Kingdom.

Hitting

Austin Mumaw (Baltimore, Md.) leads the team with a .385 batting average and is tied for the team lead with two homers, including a grand slam yesterday against Cecil. He is also tied for third on the team with seven stolen bases.

Cameron Powers (Weymouth, Mass.) is second on the Knights with a .367 batting average, which is .091 points higher than the Knights' team batting average. He is also tied for second with Mumaw for the team-lead in doubles with four. 

Catcher Mitchell Haywood (Pickering, Ontario, Canada) leads the Knights with an impressive 15 runs batted in. Haywood has also been a doubles machine, as seven of his 16 hits have been two baggers. His on-base percentage is .500 (first on the team) and he has the team's third best batting average at .348. 

Sammy Canela (Brooklyn, N.Y.) leads the Knights with 10 stolen bases and has yet to be caught this season. He also has a home run and is tied with Mumaw for third on the team with 11 RBI. 

Pitching

Rolando Heredia-Bustos (Atlanta, Ga.) has been the standout for CCBC Essex on the mound, leading the team in earned run average (1.99), wins (4) and strikeouts (41). He has made seven appearances (six starts) and boosts 11.65 strikeouts per nine innings against just 11 walks allowed

Heredia-Bustos has allowed two or fewer earned runs in six of his starts 

Jay Rose (Joppa, Md.) has been good out of the bullpen for the Knights. He has appeared in five games and is 1-0 with a 3.68 ERA through 7 1/3 innings. He has two relief appearances this season where he went two or more innings without surrendering a run.  

Up next

The Knights will look to avenge an early season loss tomorrow at home to sibling campus CCBC Catonsville. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m.

Watch live at www.youtube.com/ccbcessexknights.