DELPHOS — Senior right-hander Mike Rahrig had very little trouble Thursday, twirling a 4-hitter to lead the host Wildcats to a 7-2 Northwest Conference triumph over Paulding on a bright and mild afternoon at Wildcat Field.

Rahrig (2-0) went the distance (93 pitches, 63 for strikes) in yielding a pair of unearned runs, fanning four and issuing one free pass.

“The biggest thing today for Mike was not being overpowering but getting ahead in the count. If their batters weren’t up there being aggressive, they were falling behind,” Jefferson coach Troy Montenery said. “We needed him to be strong today. We threw five pitchers last night and needed him to be efficient and strong today. He was pounding the strike zone. They didn’t get too many hard-hit balls and for the most part, our defense was solid. We had a few mistakes but made some good plays, too.”

The Wildcats (5-1, 2-0 NWC) got all the runs they would need against the defending NWC champions in the bottom of the first frame. Cory Bastian led off with a walk and came around on a triple to deep center by Sean Fisher. In turn, he touched home plate courtesy of a ground ball to second by Aaron Schuerman. Josh Miller (2 runs) got aboard on a fielding error and stole second. Ryan Kortokrax (2-for-4, 2 runs, 2 runs batted in) singled him in on a shot to center, took second on the throw home and third on an error on the play. Matt Gerdeman (2-for-3) bounced out to short to get Kortokrax home for a 4-0 edge.

“We have been struggling at the plate lately. What hurts us even more is giving up the big inning,” Paulding coach Mike Leach noted. “We just don’t seem to be able to get out of them. We’ve got a lot of new faces in the field; even though we have some seniors, most are new to varsity. We also have a lot of sophomores.”

The Panthers (0-6, 0-2 NWC) got runners on in each of the first three innings: a 1-out error in the first to get Corbin Vance aboard and a steal of second; a 2-out line single to left by Shane Lumpkins in the second and a 2-out error of a ball hit by Vance in the third. However, Rahrig got out unscathed, picking off Vance in the third.

The Red and White loaded the bases in the second: a lead-off bloop single to right by Nik Moore, a 1-out infield hit off the pitcher by Bastian and a 2-out walk to Schuerman. However, the Wildcats couldn’t score.

They tacked on two more in the third. Kortokrax — with the wind blowing in from center field — went long ball to left for a solo shot to lead it off. Gerdeman grounded a single into center. The Panthers booted Taylor Hesseling’s grounder to leave both runners safe. An out hence, Antalis lined a hit into right-center to score Gerdeman. Pinch-runner Nick Cook and Antalis stole a base but Paulding right-hander Justin Riley (0-2; 6 IPs, 10 hits, 7 runs, 3 earned, 3 walks, 2 strikeouts) got the next two outs to keep the damage to 6-0.

“I like the balance we have in our offense. We’re getting production up and down the lineup and for me, that is crucial to winning baseball,” Montenery added. “I would rather have a bunch of guys going 1-for-3 and 2-for-4 than one or two getting four hits and the rest none. It makes us dangerous when you can put that kind of pressure on an opposing pitcher and defense.”

Mark Wolfle beat out a 2-out infield hit to short in the fifth but was left stranded (4 for the game).

The home team got two aboard in the home half: a leadoff base-on-balls to Gerdeman, a fielder’s choice groundout by Hesseling and a 2-out infield hit to deep short by Antalis; but they left them stranded (8 left on base for the game).

Paulding got a pair of unearned runs in the sixth. With two outs, Garrett Stoller walked and moved to third on a dropped fly ball hit by Haden Sholl. Aric Mericle ripped an RBI single to left to score the former; a misplay plated the latter for a 6-2 deficit.

The hosts got one back in the bottom of the frame. With one out, Jordan Jettinghoff singled down the left-field line and stole second. A throwing off on a ball hit by Miller left runners safe. Kortokrax forced Jettinghoff at third. Gerdeman lined a single into left to plate Miller and put runners on the corners. A double-steal attempt went awry, with Paulding first sacker Stoller nailing Kortokrax at home.

With one down in the Panther seventh, Wolfle singled to right. However, Alex Mott’s comebacker started a 1-6-3 inning- and game-ending double play.

“We didn’t lay down. Right now, we’re looking for any positives we can get,” Leach added. “We’ve played a lot of good teams with winning records so far this spring. The good thing is we have a lot more games to go.”

Jefferson hosts Kalida (a makeup game from March 30) tonight at 5 p.m.

Paulding hosts Tinora tonight.