Prep baseball: Bobcats roar to outright SOC I title three-peat with 7-2 win over Flyers

FRANKLIN FURNACE — Coaches harp on the so-called ‘little things’ often. That’s because maintaining the concentration and focus to do a job for seven innings, when factoring in the different elements that factor in a baseball game, can be more difficult that it appears on paper. The Green Bobcats’ baseball program clearly executed on the little things at the highest of levels in all three phases throughout the 2026 season in SOC I play and beyond.

That execution resulted in Green winning its third straight SOC I Championship on Monday, as the Bobcats took down Ironton St. Joseph 7-2 Monday evening at Green High School in Franklin Furnace behind a 10-strikeout complete gamer from Jon Knapp on the bump and five hits between junior sluggers Riddick Jenkins and Gabe Blevins offensively. Green, who improved to 17-2 on the year while winning the Southern Ohio Conference’s Division I with a record of 7-1, won by again executing in all facets.

Along with Knapp’s performance on the bump, the Bobcat defense committed just one error while the Green offense put itself in position to score five runs off of three St. Joe passed balls, a balk and an error. “Great win,” Green head coach David Shoupe said.

“We came out and gutted it out (on Thursday). That’s just been this team all year. I’m very excited.