Wittenberg Powers Past Ohio Wesleyan As Records Fall

DELAWARE, OH - Wittenberg's scheduled doubleheader at Ohio Wesleyan was adjusted to a single game on Saturday, with the teams set to play the second game on Sunday, May 3. The Tigers made the most of game one, exploding early and cruising to a 14-5 victory.

Wittenberg jumped out in front immediately in the top of the first inning as Xander Rodriguez (Salinas, PR / Franklin County) launched a two-run home run to put the Tigers ahead 2-0. The blast marked Rodriguez's 14th home run of the season.

The Tigers extended their lead in the second inning with a six-run outburst. Tommy Chilicki (Lewis Center, OH / Olentangy) delivered a two-RBI single, followed by a two-RBI single from Quintin Applegate (Delaware, OH / Olentangy Berlin). Daniel Gladden (Galena, OH / Olentangy Berlin) capped the scoring with a two-run RBI single to give Wittenberg a commanding advantage.

From there, the Tigers maintained control throughout the contest. Wittenberg added four runs in the seventh inning, highlighted by a solo home run from Gladden, and tacked on two more runs in the ninth to close out the 14-5 win.

Wade Thewes went four innings, allowing just two hits while striking out three.

With the victory, Wittenberg improves to 29-8 overall and 12-3 in NCAC play, putting the Tigers one win away from a 30-win season after finishing 29-12 a year ago. Wittenberg holds the No. 2 seed in the North Coast Athletic Conference standings.

Milestones & National Rankings

The Tigers' offensive explosion was matched by multiple record-breaking performances:

• Alex Nemunaitis (Perrysburg, OH / Ottawa Hills) recorded two hits to break Wittenberg's single-season hits record with 70, surpassing Mark Freeman's mark of 69 set in 1997. Nemunaitis now ranks top five nationally in hits this season.
• Nemunaitis also set a new single-season runs scored record with 58, breaking Freeman's previous record of 56 (1997).
• Xander Rodriguez tied the program's single-season home run record with 14 and is currently tied for third nationally in home runs. Rodriguez also ranks top five in the nation in RBIs.
• Tommy Chilicki moved into third place in single-season hits at Wittenberg with 67 and currently ranks top 10 nationally in hits.

As a team, Wittenberg continues to lead the nation in batting average (.388) and hits (538), ranks top 10 in home runs (50), and sits third nationally in runs scored (427).

Wittenberg and Ohio Wesleyan will wrap up the series with a single game on Sunday, May 3.

Written by: Luke Thomas