Andrew Grimm LINING IT UP — Toronto's Gunnar Newbold lines up a pitch against Madonna on Tuesday.

The Toronto baseball team had no such thing playing their first game since winning a third-straight OVAC title on Saturday.

The state-ranked Red Knights broke things open in the second inning and kept building the lead on the way to a 10-0, run rule victory over visiting Madonna on Tuesday evening at the Knights Baseball Complex.

“Our kids really played well,” veteran Toronto head coach Brian Perkins said. “We pitched well, fielded the ball well and hit the ball well. We played a really well-rounded baseball game. Our coaches had the guys ready to play today.”

After a scoreless first inning, the Red Knights (18-3) exploded for five runs in the bottom of the second inning and did not look back.

Andrew Grimm ON THE MOUND — Madonna starting pitcher Connor Lancaster delivers against Toronto.

Max Rebich, who finished with the only extra base hit in the game and tallied three RBIs on the day, got his first two with a two-run single to open the scoring.

A run scored on a throwing error to make it 3-0 then Caden McGrath singled in another to make it 4-0. fter a two-out error by the Blue Dons (9-8), their third of the inning, Toronto’s fifth run crossed on a balk.

“Toronto has a great program and a great coaching staff,” Madonna head coach TJ Miller said. “Coach Perk does a great job, I know him very well and they’re always going to be a well-coached team. Hats off to them for capitalizing on our mistakes and playing a good baseball game, that’s what good teams do.

“We have a lot of things on our end to work on and clean up with two weeks before regionals. We have to keep with it and keep working. It’s all mental for us right now. It’s stuff we work on in practice. Their big second inning, we kind of self destructed a little bit and that’s on me as a head coach.

“We just have to keep working and improving. I thought Connor Lancaster pitched well and put us in a position to have success but our defense has to help him out and make the routine plays behind him.”

Andrew Grimm FIRING — Toronto pitcher Michael Henry fires to a Madonna batter.

The Knights tacked on two more in the fourth on two-out RBI singles by Michael Henry and Heath Thomas. They added three more in the fifth, the last of which ended things early. Lucas Wiseman singled in a run, then Rebich hit a two-out RBI double to move things to the brink of the end. McGrath’s RBI single then scored him to enact the run rule.

“It’s good to get that done and end it early,” Perkins said. “We have some big games coming up this week so anytime you can save on some pitching, you want to take advantage of that.”

Henry pitched all five innings for Toronto, striking out six without issuing a walk. He limited the Knights to five singles.

“Michael pitched well, he really had control of the game the whole time,” Perkins said.

UP NEXT

Andrew Grimm ON THE MOVE — Toronto's Max Rebich takes off from second base after a teammate hit the ball against Madonna

Madonna: Has a couple of days to regroup before a trip to PNC Park on Friday. Madonna will take on Chartiers-Houston on Friday afternoon at the home of the Pirates.

Toronto: Has back-to-back games against state ranked opponents starting with a trip to Edison (No. 9 Division V) today. They host Division V No. 1 Waynedale on Saturday.

Toronto 10, Madonna 0 (5 innings)

M 0-0-0 0-0-x x — 0 5 3

T 0-5-0 2-3-x x — 10 9 2

MADONNA (9-8): Lancaster (LP, 4IP, 7R, 4ER, 6H, 4K, 3BB), Brooks (2/3IP, 3R, 3ER, 3H, 0K, 0BB, 1HBP) and Wingett. Bowen S; Lazear S; Brooks S; Kaczmarek S; Dillon S.

TORONTO (18-3): Henry (WP, CG, 0R, 5H, 6K, 0BB) and McGrath. McGrath 3S, 2RBIs; Bouscher S; Henry S, RBI; Thomas S, RBI; Wiseman S, RBI; Rebich D, S, 3RBIs.