Aviators Power Past Pirates 18-0

VANDALIA — Some games don't need a narrative. Friday was one of them.

Butler (10-1, 5-1) came home, scored three in the first, eleven in the second, four in the third, and sent West Carrollton home after five innings by a score of 18-0. Run rule. Clean. Professional. Exactly what you want from your team the Friday after a tough loss.

The first inning set the tone immediately — Jackson Schilling tripled to center, Paxton Dwenger tripled down the right field line, and Jack Egbert put the ball in play, driving two runs home. Just like that it was 3-0 and West Carrollton was already playing from behind against an Aviators team that doesn't give ground once it gets out front.

Then came the second inning, and any remaining uncertainty about how Friday afternoon was going to end disappeared completely. Eleven runs. A relentless procession of hard contact from top to bottom of the order that had the home dugout a carousel of atta boys.

Koby Dues singled to score two. Aidan White doubled to score one. Schilling doubled to score one more. Tate Richardson singled to score two. Jayden Rivas tripled to clear the bases. Dues came back around and added two more. Fourteen runs through two innings and the run rule was already a formality.

Davis Ketterer finished the job in the third — Richardson doubled down the right field line and Ketterer followed with a home run to left, the kind of back-to-back punch that ends any conversation about whether the game is over.

On the mound, Ketterer was just as good.

Four innings, one hit, zero runs, four strikeouts on a crisp 49 pitches. For a pitcher who also went 3-for-3 at the plate, Friday was one of those complete afternoons that sets the tone for the upcoming week. Richardson came on for the fifth and final inning and was equally clean — no hits, no runs, one strikeout, eleven pitches.

Fourteen hits spread across the lineup. Dues, Richardson, and Rivas each drove in three. Schilling went 2-for-3. Ketterer went 3-for-3. Everyone contributed. Nobody needed to be the hero because on nights like this, the lineup itself is the story.

That's what a good team looks like when it's doing its job.

The Aviators head to West Carrollton on Monday for the road rematch.