Back with a bang: Khari Rhodes returns from injury, lifts Lenape baseball to win over R.V.

Josh Friedman, Cherry Hill Courier-Post
·4 min read
Lenape outfielder Khari Rhodes had a go-ahead single in the sixth inning to lift his team to a 5-3 triumph over Rancocas Valley on Thursday.
Lenape outfielder Khari Rhodes had a go-ahead single in the sixth inning to lift his team to a 5-3 triumph over Rancocas Valley on Thursday.
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EASTAMPTON TWP. – It was bad enough Khari Rhodes had to sit out his sophomore season with the Lenape Regional High School baseball team due to a broken ankle.

But not being able to cheer on his squad in the dugout was equally painful.

“It was hard because I couldn’t be there to support my team,” said Rhodes, who missed most of the action due to physical therapy. “I was just down (having to watch) on YouTube.”

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Rhodes gave onlookers a thrill in his first varsity game Thursday when he hit a go-ahead, RBI single in the top of the sixth inning to break a 3-3 tie and propel No. 15 Lenape to a 5-3 road triumph over Rancocas Valley in its first game of the season.

“It feels good. It’s amazing. We’re pumped,” Rhodes said.

It’s hard to imagine Rhodes being more excited than he’s been this preseason.

“He was doing everything game speed in practice,” head coach Mike Wasienko said.

That’s not a surprise. Rhodes was building to Lenape’s 2023 opener from the second he was cleared by doctors.

As soon as he was told he was good to go, he began waking up at 6 a.m. to go train at Crunch Fitness. He’s done that almost every day for the last year.

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“I put a lot of pressure on myself,” he said.

Rhodes handled it with aplomb though as he hit the ball great throughout March to earn a starting spot.

He thought he made better contact than he did on his game-winning knock against Rancocas Valley.

“I thought it was gone,” he smiled.

Rhodes barreled a 1-2 fastball deep to right field. The Red Devils’ Angel Rodriguez made a great effort to track it down, but the ball bounced off his glove as he dove for the catch, allowing the go-ahead run to cross.

“That was something electric,” junior Grant Hunter said. “… I just love it.”

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Game notes

  • Lenape got its season started with a bang as Hunter followed a leadoff single by Zach Barbash and a walk to Andrew Shank with a three-run blast over the left-field fence for an early 3-0 advantage.“It felt great,” said Hunter, a Virginia Tech commit. “I went down (1-2) real quick, but I was just looking for something to hit, expand my zone, and I found something I could drive.”

  • Wasienko said before the season Barbash, Shank and Hunter would drive the offense and they delivered against Rancocas Valley. Hunter was 2-for-4 with a double and that three-run homer, Barbash went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run and Shank had three walks and a run.“These guys have been through a ton,” Wasienko said. “Crazy, great (wins), bad losses, no doubt we’re going to rely on them at the top of the order to get us going.”

  • Jon Adelmann got the start on the bump for Lenape. He allowed 2 runs (1 earned) on 2 hits and 2 walks and fanned 5. Danny Snyder came in relief and allowed the tying run to cross, but he set down the next seven batter he faced to earn the victory.

  • Kudos to Red Devils hurler Joe Dinneen, who didn’t give up another run after the Hunter homer and went five strong. He struck out 10 on the day and kept his team in the game.

  • Rancocas Valley got on the board in the bottom of the first on an RBI single by Trevor Myers, scored on an error in the fourth to narrow the gap to 3-2 and tied it on Rodriguez’s knock in the fifth.

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The last word

“We just got back from senior trip and I told ’em, however we win today it’s going to be a good win. I’m proud of ’em.”

– Lenape head coach Mike Wasienko

Josh Friedman has produced award-winning South Jersey sports coverage for the Courier Post, The Daily Journal and the Burlington County Times for more than a decade. If you have or know of an interesting story to tell, reach out on Twitter at @JFriedman57 or via email at jfriedman2@gannettnj.com. You can also contact him at 856-486-2431. Help support local journalism with a subscription.

This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Lenape High School baseball surges past Rancocas Valley for victory