Mitchell Shifflett watched three batters in a row reach base, two of them with big line-drive hits. He stepped into the batter's box for Cosby, and did what he knew how to do.

He bunted.

That level of restraint and team-first play made the difference for the Titans as they knocked off the James River Rapids 12-2 yesterday.

"Of course I'm up there wanting to hit," Shifflett said. "But it's important to get the bunts down, too."

The game featured two of the area's best pitchers, James River's Austin Stadler and Cosby's Ronnie Shaban. Both turned in strong performances as they tried to pitch their team to the top of the Dominion District.

But the game didn't hinge on the stars. Instead it was the other eight players on the field who made the difference.

The Rapids made three errors and a handful of other fielding mistakes, which was out of character for the defending state champions.

"They put the ball in play, which is what good teams do, then we kicked it around a bit," coach Pete Schumacher said. "We had chances to end innings and chances to start innings well."

Cosby had no such problems getting behind Shaban, including a warning-track catch from Shifflett that kept a run off the board in the fifth inning.

"There were a couple catches to end innings where it could have gone either way," Shaban said. "That gave us momentum, and the guys came into the dugout ready to hit."

Shaban was sharp despite pitching in relief in recent weeks. He was removed from the game in the seventh because he had thrown 85 pitches, but kept his fastball sharp until the game's final outs.

Likewise, Stadler had a strong game for the Rapids until being removed in the seventh, which led to a six-run inning for Cosby that padded its lead.

He used his breaking pitches to keep batters on their toes and force ground balls from the Titans.

But once they hit the ground, they acted more like pinballs than baseballs. It was an unceremonious end for the James River field, as the team hopes to move into its new digs by the end of the week.

"When you play against a good team, you've got to do all the little things right," Schumacher said. "Both teams made two great plays, but they made the routine plays and we didn't."

Cosby had five players pick up two hits each, including three from Shifflett, who reached twice on bunts.

The speedy sophomore also runs track, and though he says baseball is his top priority, he lets the coaches work out what his schedule will be when both are in season.

He figured bunting was his best chance against Stadler, a pitcher who will be pitching at the D-I level next year.

"I was just sitting there and watching him," Shifflett said. "It's cool to say that I faced him -- he knows what he's doing."

That's a claim the Titans can also make. They're undefeated in one of the state's top districts, and that's no little thing.

Contact Michael Phillips at mphillips@timesdispatch.com.

Cosby ------------------------- 030 021 6 -- 12 13 0
James River ------------------------- 001 001 0 -- 2 9 3

Stadler, Grander (7), Jaszewski (7) and Cleary; R. Shaban, Ackerman (7) and Lowery. W: Shaban. L: Stadler.

Records: Cosby 8-0 Dominion, 13-1; James River 7-3, 10-5