Despite sitting in fourth place in the GNAC standings, Central’s baseball team has been tearing it up offensively after a slow start.

As a team the Wildcats are batting .301, which is 33 points above the next team in the conference.

“We’re just sticking to our approach and seeing the ball well,” said senior infielder Jonathan Dailey .

Central’s success at the plate has started at the top of the lineup with its leadoff hitter Ryan Atkinson. Atkinson, a senior utility man, is fourth in the GNAC in batting with a .347 average and third with 23 runs scored.

“As a leadoff guy I just try and do anything I can to get on base,” Atkinson said. “I think that just sets the tone for the rest of the lineup.”

Atkinson is part of a trio of Wildcats who make up three of the conference’s top-four batting averages.

Dailey is second in the conference with a .375 average and senior outfielder Reid Martinez lead the conference with a .403 average.

That type of hitting can rub off on others in the lineup.

“Hitting is definitely a contagious thing,” Dailey said. “You just get a good vibe when everyone’s hitting.”

It hasn’t just been the guys at the top of the lineup shouldering the load for Central. According to head coach Desi Storey, Central has been getting production from everyone in the lineup and off the bench.

“Throughout the lineup it’s been really good. We’ve got some guys that are interchangeable. There’s not a lot of drop off if you go to another guy,” Storey said. “If a guy’s struggling we can bring someone off the bench.”

Early in the season, Central struggled offensively. The Wildcats’ bats started to heat up as they got some time on the field after spending much of their preseason practices indoors because of weather.  

“Mother nature early on was hard for us… Our first game it was a little bit slow out of the gates,” Atkinson said.

Some credit warmer weather to increased offensive numbers as the season goes on, but Storey said he believes it has to do more with experience on the field.

“I use us for an example because a month ago we were the second worst hitting team in the league,” Storey said. “We got some games under our belt and the guys are working hard and making adjustments.”

Central has put up these numbers offensively with senior outfielder Darren Honeysett, one of its top returning players, producing at the same clip as he did a year ago.

“I think teams are being a little more careful with him because they know what he’s capable of,” Storey said. “I think there for a while he put a little too much pressure on himself too. He had a couple of weeks were I thought he tried to do to much… he’s relaxing a little bit and just trying to square up balls instead of doing more than he is capable of doing.”

Central will try and stay at the top of the conference in hitting while playing 12 of its next 13 games on the road.

Central has hit just 6 of its 18 home runs this season on the road.

“I like [hitting at home] just because the wind helps you a lot on this field,” Dailey said. “If you get a good swing on it, it goes a long way.”