May 10, 2008

Box Score

ATHENS, Ohio - The Ohio baseball team completed a sweep of Miami, capturing all three games of the series on Saturday at Bob Wren Stadium to increase its winning streak to five games.

Ohio (25-27, 12-12 MAC) captured the first game, 6-5, out-slugged Miami (17-33, 7-17 MAC) in the second game, 16-11, and rallied back from four-runs down in the bottom of the eighth inning of game three to win, 7-5, on what was the final home game for six Ohio seniors.

Due to rain, Friday's series opener was suspended in the eighth inning, setting up the marathon day of baseball which included 20 innings. Ohio and Miami resumed the final two innings of the opening game Saturday afternoon and then played a doubleheader.

Ohio belted nine home runs, four doubles and 25 hits on the day to stay in the chase for a MAC Tournament berth and move in front of Akron (24-20, 8-9 MAC) into third place in the MAC East Division.

Game 3: Ohio 7, Miami 5
The Bobcats completed the sweep in dramatic comeback fashion, fueled by the bats of freshman Zach Keen (Beavercreek, Ohio) and sophomore Marc Krauss (Deshler, Ohio). Trailing 5-1 in the bottom of the eighth inning, Keen connected on his first collegiate grand slam, a shot over the left field wall to tie the game at 5-5. Senior Matt Stiffler (Bellbrook, Ohio) singled in the next at-bat, and then two batters later Krauss blasted a shot to center field to give Ohio a 7-5 lead.

Junior right-hander Kevin Mementowski (Parma, Ohio) made sure there would be no comeback, closing out the final inning to earn his first save of the season.

Keen finished 1-for-3 in the game with four RBI and one run scored and Stiffler extended his current hitting streak to 12 games with a 2-for-4 performance. Senior Zach Hartle (Toledo, Ohio) went 2-for-3 in the game with one run scored.

The final game of the day started as a pitchers duel between Ohio left-hander Zach Elmer (Delaware, Ohio) and Miami lefty Tyler Melling. Elmer gave up one run in the first, but then settled down to hold the RedHawks to just two hits and no runs through the next four innings. Melling matched Elmer's effort, holding the Bobcats hitless through the first 4.2 innings, until the Bobcats broke it up in the bottom of the fifth.

Miami took a 2-0 lead in the top of the sixth, before Ohio brought its first run across the plate with a solo-homer by Stiffler in the bottom of the sixth. Miami took a 5-1 lead in the top of the eighth on a two-RBI double by Josh Hula and a sacrifice fly.

Elmer earns the victory to improve to 4-3, after working a season-high 8.0 innings and striking out a season-high eight batters. Elmer allowed eight hits and five earned runs.

Melling takes the loss, after going 7.0 innings, allowing six earned runs on seven hits and striking out three.

Game 2: Ohio 16, Miami 11
In the second game the Bobcats tied a season-high with six home runs, including three in the bottom of the seventh inning that turned a one-run deficit into a 14-10 lead. The Bobcats went on to add two more runs in the bottom of the eighth inning on RBI-singles by seniors Matt Stiffler and Jason Selhorst, giving Ohio the 16-11 slugfest-victory.

The two teams combined for 30 hits and nine home runs, but it was Ohio's bats that heated up late in the game to pull away with the victory.

Stiffler, Hartle, junior Brandon Besl, and freshmen Adam Gecewich, Robert Maddox III, and Guantlett Eldemire all blasted homers for the Bobcats. Stiffler went 4-for-5 for the game with three RBI and one run scored, while Besl and Maddox each had two hits and three RBI. Besl was 2-for-2 in the game, before he left in the fourth inning after being hit in the jaw with a pitch. Keen went 2-for-4 with two runs scored.

Junior Matt Schlarb (1-1) earned the win after allowing just one run on one hit in the final 3.0 innings. Miami's Sam Dawes (2-4) took the loss after recording just one out and giving up three hits and three runs in a relief appearance.

Game 1: Ohio 6, Miami 5
The first two innings of baseball on Saturday were the final two the series opener from Friday, which was suspended Friday night due to rain. The game resumed in the top of the eighth inning with the Bobcats holding a 6-5 lead.

Senior lefty Matt Smith closed out the final two innings for Ohio, allowing just one hit and no runs to preserve the lead and give the Bobcats the game one victory.

Senior Jason Selhorst (Ottawa, Ohio) finished 2-for-3 with his fifth double of the season and two runs scored. Keen (Beavercreek, Ohio) was 2-for-3 with one run scored and sophomore Marc Krauss (Deshler, Ohio) went 1-for-3 with a three-run home run.

Junior left-hander Adam Goodpasture (Columbis, Ohio) earned the victory for Ohio to improve to 4-2, after retiring the only batter he faced in the top of the seventh inning. Smith gets his first save of the season after pitching the final two innings.

Miami jumped on the scoreboard first in the top of the second inning on a two-RBI double by Kyle Weldon, giving Miami a 2-0 lead. The Bobcats brought their first runs across the board in the bottom of the fourth inning on Krauss' three-run blast over the right field wall, putting Ohio in front 3-2.

In the top of the fifth inning, Josh Hula tied the game up for the RedHawks at 3-3 with a solo-home run to left field.

Selhorst then doubled to lead off the sixth inning, before being brought across the plate by freshman Robert Maddox III (Euclid, Ohio) on a single to center field, giving Ohio a brief 4-3 lead.

Miami continued the back and fourth battle in the seventh inning with a two-run homer over the center field wall by Jordan Petraitis, lifting the RedHawks back into a 5-4 advantage.

As the rain began to fall in the bottom half of the seventh inning, Ohio struck the final blow. Stiffler (Bellbrook, Ohio) connected on his team-leading sixth triple of the season to score Keen to tie the game, 5-5. Then Besl hit an RBI-single, giving the Bobcats a 6-5 lead, before play was suspended.

Junior right-hander Chris Rigo (Westlake, Ohio) got the start for the Bobcats, going 6.2 innings, giving up five runs, four earned, on eight hits, while striking out one.

Miami's Matt Erwood worked 6.1 innings, allowing five runs on nine hits while striking out three.