Early Lead Doesn't Hold Up At Tigers Fall At Otterbein
Wittenberg scores six runs in the first two innings, but Cardinals chip away until scoring the winning run in the bottom of the ninth for 10-9 victory.
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 12 | 2 |
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1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 17 | 4 |
WESTERVILLE, Ohio - The Wittenberg Tigers jumped out to a 6-1 lead over the first two innings, but it didn't hold up as Otterbein pulled out a 10-9 victory on a walk-off hit in the bottom of the ninth.
The loss dropped Wittenberg to 3-5 on the season in its first game in the Buckeye state after seven contests during Spring Break week in Florida. Otterbein improved to 11-1.
Wittenberg struck first with a four-run rally to open the game in the top of the first inning, punctuated by an RBI double from senior Aaron Patrick (Eldorado, Ohio/Tri-Valley). After Otterbein answered with a home run in the bottom of the inning, the Tigers tacked on two more in the top of the second on RBI singles from sophomore Cal Slusarz (Chesterland, Ohio/West Geauga) and sophomore Dalton Boucher (Granville, Ohio/Granville).
Otterbein got two runs back in the bottom of the second and then tied the game on a passed ball and a sacrifice fly in the fourth. The Cardinals then pushed in front, collecting single runs in the sixth, seventh and eighth that were countered by a lone Tiger score in the eighth.
That set the stage for a wide ninth inning, which started with Wittenberg drawing even on a two-run single off Patrick's bat, scoring sophomore Dimitrious Dimitroff (Springfield, Ohio/Catholic Central) and junior Corey Farnbauch (Hilliard, Ohio/Davidson). After Wittenberg left the potential winning run on base, Otterbein had the ultimate answer, parlaying an error, a pair of bunt singles into a bases-loaded, no-outs situation that ended with a game-winning single to center.
Boucher finished with game 3-for-4 with three runs batted in, while Patrick finished 2-of-3 with three RBIs. Farnbauch, Boucher and senior Zac Wilson (Eaton, Ohio/Eaton) each scored two runs for the Tigers.
Seven different Tigers pitched in the game, with sophomore Trent Champlin (Gahanna, Ohio/Lincoln) taking the loss after allowing two runs on five hits in an inning-plus to close the game.
Written By: Ryan Maurer