MILL HALL — Many people may not have taken notice yet, but Central Mountain has already begun to prepare themselves for games in late May into June. Whether the scoreboard says it or not, with its strength of schedule in the first five games already played, the Wildcats have come out and shown teams its capabilities early in the season.

Central Mountain had no problem doing that against Shamokin when it won its fifth consecutive game on Monday afternoon, 14-1, including its third straight conference win.

The Wildcats have many weapons this season, and that’s what makes this team a dangerous threat to making a deep postseason run. Aside from those aspirations, though, Central Mountain is making noise right now, and that’s what matters.

The barrage started with Central Mountain pitcher Cru Stover. The senior pitched four innings, threw six strikeouts and gave up no runs on his way to another victory on the hill for the Wildcats. Stover’s miraculous game included less than 50 pitches and was near the 80th percentile range in pitch-strike ratio.

“He pitched quality innings while he was out there, so I was pleased with what he did,” Central Mountain coach Mike Kramer said following the win. “We had a combined no hitter so we wanted to give some other guys opportunities after he established the momentum.”

Stover’s monumental performance led way to some powerful offensive hitting that the Indians couldn’t handle. In the third and fourth innings alone, Central Mountain strung together 10 hits and 12 runs. Seven different Wildcat batters stepped up.

Gabe Johnson stole the show offensively, among others, and was electric at the plate. The senior posted 3-4 at the plate with two runs and an RBI on the afternoon. Johnson also stole three bases. With Johnson third in the batting lineup, his production sparked his teammates to join in on the fun.

Kelvin Probst and Elek Fravel both added two runs, including 2-3 on the day for Probst. Levi Schlesinger, Braylen Corter and Gardner Fravel each added a run and Nate Helms posted 2-3 on the day with two RBIs.

Shamokin made many errors throughout the entire game, including multiple in the nine-run fourth inning. But that doesn’t take away from Central Mountain capitalizing on those mistakes and putting on an offensive show. It took a couple innings for the Wildcats to get loose, but once it did, it was like a dog unleased from a cage.

“It took a little bit to get on the timing of their (Shamokin’s) pitching,” coach Kramer mentioned. “When we did put the ball in play we got some hits and our guys were aggressive on the attack. We just capitalized on what they gave us.”

Central Mountain capitalizing on those turnovers doesn’t happen without its pitcher, one of its senior leaders in Stover. Not only did Stover pitch one of the best games to start his final season as a Wildcat, he also hit the ball and made plays for his teammates.

Stover went 1-4 at the plate, but he added two RBIs in the fourth inning to help his guys tack on more runs. With his versatility and ability to focus on the hill and step up to the plate to bat runs in is vital to this team’s success. It’s clear that he has continuously put in work over the years to become the player he is right now.

“Cru (Stover) is a solid player,” coach Kramer said. “He’s going to be a guy that we can count on in clutch situations. He came in, dominated on the mound and he takes good at-bats. It’s because of all the work he’s put in over the years, it’s paying off.”

Central Mountain has put itself in a good spot at this point in the season. Without a loss overall or in conference play, the Wildcats are content with where they are as a team.

The Wildcats opened its season with a tough, non-conference road win at State College in eight innings, beat DuBois by 13 only giving up one run and shutout Milton ahead of Monday’s victory.

“I’m pleased with where we’re at right now but not satisfied with where we are because there’s a long season ahead…just have to play it game-by-day,” coach Kramer said.

The Wildcats go back to the drawing board ahead of Wednesday’s home conference matchup with Jersey Shore.

Central Mountain 113 90 – 14

Shamokin 000 10 – 1

Cru Stover, Ashton Bennett (5). Joey Hile, Hayden Karlovich (4), Ty Neary (5). W: Stover L: Karlovich.

Top Central Mountain hitters: Gabe Johnson 3-4, 2 runs, RBI; Elek Fravel 2-3, 2 RBIs; Gardner Fravel 2-3 2 RBIs; Nate Helms 2-3 2 RBIs. Kevin Grenninger 2-4, run, RBI. Top Shamokin hitters: Cam Kerstetter 1-2; Ty Neary 1-2; Lincoln Waugh 1-2.

Records: CM (5-0), Shamokin (0-5).