COLUMBUS -- 31-1.

Division II state champions.

The best in Ohio.

All of that and more describes the 2013 Defiance High School baseball team, a team that had a goal of capturing a state title. That goal was accomplished with an 8-2 win over Jonathan Alder in the D-II state title game at Huntington Park in Columbus on Saturday evening.

So how did they do it?

How did this team bring home the school's second state baseball crown and first since the 1992 squad captured to the Division I championship?

Like all the Defiance teams of the past 30-plus years, it was built on pitching and defense, and it had plenty of offensive firepower too. As it turns out, overcoming adversity by earning a 1-0 win in the district semifinals over Toledo Central Catholic while getting no-hit was also as big as any win this season.

"When you get no-hit in the district semis like we did, and you see this a lot from teams that win championships, winning a game like that proves what you are made of," said Defiance mentor Tom Held, who in his 15 seasons at Defiance has a record of 386-59. "We faced such great pitching in our league, our non-conference schedule was strong, the district we were in ... all that prepared us for state."

Led by the 1-2 senior pitching combo of righty Rob Zeigler and lefty Weston Rivers, the opposition, as it turned out, never had much of a chance.

Zeigler, a Kentucky signee, finished 2013 with a record of 10-0 and an ERA of 0.45. Rivers, a Lincoln Trail Junior College signee, also went 10-0 with an ERA of 0.31. Both join Jon Niese (2005, 12-0) and Tyler Burgoon (11-0, 2007) as the only hurlers to finish undefeated and with double-digit wins in a season. As a staff (Derek Turner, Mazen Kanouh, Austin Hancock, Ethan Willitzer), DHS pitching had a COMBINED ERA of 0.69.

In the field, juniors Dom Gentile and Austin Hancock flashed the leather at third and shortstop, respectively, while senior catcher Joe Keween was a wall behind the plate. Senior left fielder Dom Romero, junior center fielder Jacob Green and right fielders Adam Schaffer (junior) and Alek Smith (senior) made big catch after big catch, and Derek Turner (junior) and Drake Jimenez (senior) combined to put the clamps on the opposition at second, as did Zeigler and Rivers at first.

At the plate, the team hit .335 and outscored the opposition 243 to 46. Zeigler led DHS with a .437 average, five home runs and 37 RBIs. Schaffer (.390), Hancock (.385) and Gentile (.383) all hit better than .380, while senior DH Austin Yant (.315), Romero (.308), Turner (.286) and Keween (.263), all added some punch in 2013.

The stats all add up to a state championship, but this DHS team was much more than stats. There were the seniors, who numbered 10 in all, that accepted their roles when they weren't starting and did what was best for the team. Seniors such as Jimenez, Smith, Willitzer, Kanouh and Wade Verhoff. There were players such sophomores Wes Detter, Garrett Sierra and Gage Cordray who didn't play much, but had their moments.

There also is a coaching staff, led by Held, associate head coach Rick Weaver and varsity assistants Shane Coleman and Mark Vittorio, that deserve much credit. All the wins, WBL, sectional, district and regional titles under their leadership speak for themselves. Now they all can add "state title" to their resumes as well.

Held, however, put it best when he said: "It's neat for me to see these kids win this state championship, but the people who know me best know that I don't do this to win state championships. I love baseball, I love helping kids and as a staff we don't ever talk about winning a state championship. The reward we get is when we get invited to the weddings of the guys we've coached, when they show up to games after they're out of high school to talk us coaches and cheer on the team. I love what I do, I feel privileged to be a part of this program and I will never take it for granted. I love Defiance baseball."