LEBANON — Parents and players with the Lebanon High baseball team recently undertook a day of work at Doug Ashey Field, toiling to spruce up the worn diamond and its environs.

The backstop was reinforced and new bricks of clay laid on the mound and at home plate. Small trees and undergrowth were taken down or trimmed back. New artificial turf and netting was installed at the batting cage.

The facelift made its game debut Wednesday with winless ConVal in town, when the Raiders fell back into an early tie before tidying themselves up and prevailing, 13-3. Jack Clary and Ryan Lundrigan, batting eighth and ninth in the hosts’ order, combined for four hits and seven RBIs.

“We’re loaded with talent but can we hang with the big dogs?” said third-year Lebanon coach Chauncey Wood, who expressed similar sentiments a year ago before watching his team finish 7-9. “We’re going to have to clean it up.”

Speed and defense appear to be the Raiders’ hallmarks, but their hitting and pitching will be tested not only in always-tough NHIAA Division II but also by a backloaded schedule that has them playing six games during the regular season’s final 12 days.

Throw in a rescheduled rainout or two and even if Lebanon (1-1) reaches the playoffs, its players may be utterly exhausted.

“We need to have a better approach at the plate,” said Wood, who’s watched his team strike out looking 10 times in two games. “We have to step in with the intention of getting a hit and swing at better pitches.

“We’ve got to be better with two strikes, because it’s a big part of baseball.”

Lebanon starter Sam Bates lasted 2⅔ innings, allowing five hits and three runs, all earned. The senior struck out three Cougars and walked three as well. Reliever Nick Brill went the same distance but surrendered one hit and no runs, striking out five and walking three.

The hosts scored three runs during the first frame before ConVal forged a 3-3 tie during its third at-bat. Lebanon responded with four runs during the bottom half of the inning and struck for single tallies during each of its next trips to the plate. A five-run outburst during the sixth brought the mercy rule into effect.

The Raiders can throw Sam Bates and his twin, Dawson, along with Brill and Bennett Hewett, who closed out Wednesday’s contest. Problematic is the loss of shortstop and pitcher Francis Calandrella, who suffered a broken ulna bone in one forearm when hit by a pitch during the season opener.

Lebanon’s team chemistry is strong, with Wood breaking into a chuckle while describing that bond. The Raiders feature eight three-sport athletes, meaning they’ve celebrated and suffered together on soccer fields, basketball courts and hockey rinks. Players know which of their buddies’ buttons to push and when.

“They’re a fun bunch to be around,” Wood said, noting that his four seniors have played together since Little League. “The camaraderie is unreal. They communicate well with me and each other and they pick each other up.

“Once this team grows into its talent, we’ll be fine.”

Notes: Among those watching were former Raiders standout and Boston Red Sox pitcher Rob Woodward and Lebanon American Legion Post 22 baseball business manager Pete St. Pierre. The latter said that with Wood moving up from the junior level to take over for Woodward at the senior level, Scott Davis and Travis Pelletier will now coach the younger team. … The musical offerings between innings included the theme from the television show “Green Acres,” which featured Eddie Albert and Eva Gabor and ran from 1965-71, more than 30 years before any current high school player was born. Also aired was a Monty Python snippet. … Lebanon athletic director Mike Stone said his school’s petition to drop Mount Royal and add Mascoma to its boys hockey co-op has been approved by the NHIAA’s classification committee. It must do the same when it arrives before the body’s executive council, of which Lebanon principal Ian Smith is a member.

Tris Wykes can be reached at twykes@vnews.com.

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