Following a 10-0 opening day loss at the hands of Perrysburg and the left arm of University of Toledo bound ace Alec Schmenk, who struck out 14 of 15 batters faced en route to a perfect game, the Lake Flyers have never looked back.

Since that unforgettable day in late March, the Flyers have won 19 of 21 games behind consistent pitching, reliable defense, timely hitting — and Ryan Kohlhofer, their sweet-swinging junior shortstop.

Kohlhofer’s bat has been invaluable to Lake’s success.  In 22 regular season games, the 5-foot-9, 140 pound slugger is second on the team with a .391 batting average and leads the team with 27 hits, four home runs, 25 RBI, and 28 runs scored. 

Lake junior shortstop Ryan Kohlhofer (Press photo by Nathan Lowe)

He has certainly been the central figure in the middle of Lake’s lethal lineup, which has outscored opponents by an average of five runs per game in its 19 wins and is averaging almost seven runs a game.

“Most of my guys were in the gym hitting in January and February and it shows up and down the lineup,” said 27th-year head coach Greg Wilker.  “We’re getting key two-out hits.  We’ve had a lot of rallies with two outs and it has the kids believing that someone is going to come up with the key hit.”

A natural athlete, Kohlhofer, who is the second consecutive player from Lake to be among the league leaders in home runs (Ryan Hotmer in 2010), credits his power stroke and hitting prowess in part to his athleticism, but says it has much more to do with hard work, dedication, and love of the game.

“I work hard.  My dad [Mike] is a really big influence on me.  I take at least one hundred swings every night with him.  He gives me a lot of motivation to keep going because he thinks I can play at the next level and he keeps pushing me to get better each and every day.”

“He’s the kind of kid who would hit year round if we had the facilities.  He just loves the game,” Wilker said.

Kohlhofer, who is second on the team with 12 stolen bases, has been a mainstay in the middle of Lake’s lineup ever since he was called up to varsity at the beginning of last season.  Kohlhofer didn’t waste any time catching the eyes of area coaches and players during his sensational sophomore season, smashing three home runs and earning first-team ALL-SLL honors as an outfielder.

“I knew right from the start he could swing the bat,” said Wilker, who is eyeing his sixth league championship, and first since 2003, at the helm of the Flyers.

Whether Kohlhofer is driving doubles into the alley, stealing bases, or rounding the bases after smashing a go-ahead home run, productive defense is something he never loses sight on and takes great pride in.

“I take pride in everything I do.  I work just as hard on defense as I do on offense.  Defense is just as important as hitting.  You’re going to have off days at the plate, but you can always play good defense.”

Wilker agrees and said Lake’s defense — which is anchored by Kohlhofer and senior Casey Witt up the middle — and pitching has kept them in games. 

The Flyers staff, which is anchored by Witt, juniors Josh Tantari, Nathan Scanlan, and Jake Materni, has a combined 2.56 team ERA in 145 innings of work.

“We have played outstanding defense behind our solid pitching staff all year long and Ryan is a big part of it at shortstop.  It’s the same with all sports.  If you’re strong up the middle and play good defense, you have a chance to win every time out.”

Kohlhofer is hoping to win yet another league championship for his veteran coach.  As of Thursday, the Flyers were 8-0 in league play with games left against league rivals Genoa, Gibsonburg, Elmwood and Otsego.

“It would mean a lot to win a championship for Coach Wilker.  It would be our first in eight years.  He has waited too long and nobody deserves it more than he does.”

“I remember making a quote after the Perrysburg game,” said Wilker.  “I said, ‘People are going to be wondering how Lake can lose this bad to Perrysburg and then be playing for a league championship at the end of the year.’ And, I think we’re going to be [playing for a championship] into the final week, here.  We just need to take it one game at a time and see what happens.”

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