Staff photo / Dan Hiner McDonald pitcher Brady Shobel delivers during the second inning of Monday’s game against Lowellville at Bob Cene Park.

The McDonald baseball team was about a year ahead of schedule when it made its playoff push last season. The Blue Devils entered the spring with high hopes, and so far, they’ve set themselves up for another run.

McDonald has been on a good run of late, winning six of its last seven and posting a 12-3 record. That included finishing sweeps of Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference Scarlet Tier foes Jackson-Milton, Lowellville, Waterloo and Campbell.

“Our goals are to win the league, win the district and see what we can do in the regionals. That’s it,” McDonald coach Andy Timko said. “As long as the kids are having a good time … this is high school baseball. As long as they’re doing that, we’re having fun and we’re winning and everything, one takes care of the other.”

The Blue Devils won their district and advanced to the regional semifinals last year. They fell to Tiffin Calvert, who made its way to the Division VII state semifinals.

That postseason journey was a little bittersweet. The players were excited to make it out of the district, but it also motivated them to come back stronger this spring.

“Coach always tells us, ‘Gotta work when no one’s watching.’ I 100% believe that everyone was working this offseason to play the best,” sophomore infielder and pitcher Quinn Schmidt said.

Pitching has led the way for the Blue Devils to this point in the season. Entering Tuesday, seven pitchers have appeared in at least two games, and five of them had an ERA 1.62 or less.

Just like last year, junior righty Brady Shobel has been the calming force on the mound. In his first six appearances, he posted a 3-1 record and a 1.50 ERA.

“As long as they throw strikes, we’re fine,” Timko said. “We got a really good defense behind us, so I tell them to throw strike one.”

The Blue Devils have also gotten a boost from some fresh faces. Five new members joined the team this season, including players from the football team.

“They bring that winning mentality over from the football program. It’s been great,” Timko said. “We got a year under our belt. We’re looking to get back into regionals and see if we can compete a little better than we did last year.”

Timko knows his team has a shot at another deep tournament run, so he added some talented opponents to the schedule this year. The Blue Devils scheduled Howland, Austintown Fitch and Ursuline to get the boys prepared for the postseason.

The Blue Devils will have a challenge today at home. Springfield is coming to town, and the Tigers are among the top teams in the league. A little later in the season, they are scheduled to face Poland and South Range as well.

The MVAC Scarlet has been competitive so far this season, so Schmidt and the Blue Devils aren’t considering themselves the favorites just yet.

“I love being the underdog. I love being the guy people doubt, because it gives you more motivation to have that drive and keep playing on,” Schmidt said.