Columbus East High School

Olympians Honor Heroes, Seniors in Hard-Fought Battle Against Bulldogs The Columbus East High School baseball team honored both sacrifice and senior leadership Monday evening at Olympian Field before battling through a tightly contested Hoosier Hills Conference matchup against the New Albany Bulldogs. Prior to first pitch, the Olympians held a Memorial Day moment of reflection to honor the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice defending the nation’s freedoms. Columbus East also recognized its four seniors — Logan Rager, Ryker Stott, Kaden Arnholt, and Bige Asher — during Senior Night festivities on a beautiful evening for baseball. Once the game began, runs proved difficult to come by as the Olympians fell to New Albany 4-2 in seven innings. Columbus East wasted little time getting on the board in the opening inning. Landyn Jewell and JD Rotert both worked walks before Ryker Stott added another free pass to load the bases. Logan Rager then delivered the first run of the night by drawing a bases-loaded walk, giving the Olympians a 1-0 advantage. The Bulldogs answered in the top of the second inning, capitalizing on a series of baserunners to push across four runs. Despite the early damage, East pitchers settled in and kept the visitors off the scoreboard the rest of the night. Senior Ryker Stott took the loss on the mound, allowing four runs — none earned — over three innings while striking out three. Kaden Arnholt provided a strong relief appearance, tossing three scoreless innings with two strikeouts, while Paxton Thompson closed the game with a scoreless seventh inning and one strikeout. The Olympians threatened late in the sixth inning. Stott sparked the rally with a line-drive single before Arnholt followed with a double to left field, putting runners at second and third. Rager later brought home Stott on a fielder’s choice to trim the deficit to 4-2. East continued to battle into the final inning as Jewell drew a walk to bring the tying run to the plate, but the Bulldogs were able to record the final outs to secure the conference victory. Hits were at a premium throughout the evening, with the Olympians collecting just three total. Stott, Arnholt, and Reid Koester each recorded one hit, while Rager drove in both Columbus East runs. The Olympians showed patience at the plate despite the loss, drawing six walks as Stott and Jewell each reached base twice via walks. Columbus East stranded six runners in the contest. Columbus East returns to action Tuesday evening at Olympian Field when they host Indianapolis Lutheran. First pitch: 6 p.m.