Doubleheader Sweep Of Earlham Brings Two Wins For Tigers
The Wittenberg Tigers combusted into an explosion of offense on Saturday, overwhelming the Earlham Quakers with a combined 33 runs in the course of two games in a doubleheader sweep by scores of 15-7 and 18-6.
SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - The Wittenberg Tigers combusted into an explosion of offense on Saturday, overwhelming the Earlham Quakers with a combined 33 runs in the course of two games in a doubleheader sweep by scores of 15-7 and 18-6.
Leading the charge from the offensive standpoint in Game One was the extremely productive bat of senior shortstopJoel Puthoff (Houston, Ohio/Russia), who generated an incredible eight RBIs on just two hits, including a two-out grand slam. He crossed the plate himself twice. Another notable performance came from senior catcher Matt Steinke (Wapakoneta, Ohio/St. Mary's Memorial), who put up two RBIs on 2-for-3 hitting.
In Game Two, the offense was even more spread out, as seven different hitters registered RBIs, including Steinke and junior right fielder Patrick Williams (Plainfield, Ind./Plainfield) who each drove in four runs and even tagged back-to-back home runs in the sixth. Steinke was 4-for-5 with two home runs to round out a great offensive day, while Williams tore apart the slump he was in with a perfect 4-for-4 day from the dish, including the home run. Williams preserved himself on the basepaths, scoring three out of his four appearances on base. Sophomore first baseman Chris Dorka (Worthington, Ohio/Thomas Worthington) drove in three runs, on a sacrifice fly, a walk, and a double, in his 1-for-3 day from the plate.
In pitching statisitcs, sophomore Bobby Ciucki (Dublin, Ohio/Coffman) picked up the win in Game One, giving up seven runs, six earned, while striking out four. Ciucki is now 3-2 on the season. Freshman Sam Clement (Chicago, Ill/Whitney Young) pitched the last two innings in relief of Ciucki, holding Earlham scoreless and sending three back to the dugout on the strikes.
The nightcap was won by sophomore Joel Assenheimer (Hilliard, Ohio/Davidson). Assenheimer gave up four runs, all earned, on 10 hits, but picked up four K's in five innings of work. Junior Josh Fiebiger (Fletcher, Ohio/Miami East) took over for Assenheimer and cruised to the end, allowing two runs, one earned, on five hits and two walks.
The Tigers next suit up for a doubleheader against Thomas More, beginning at 1 p.m. on Sunday. Overall, the Tigers are now 17-16, and own a 7-9 conference record.