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Ohio Wesleyan 4, Wittenberg 0
Wittenberg 16, Ohio Wesleyan 15
April 18, 2009
![[ Matthew Struble ]](../images/struble.jpg)
Junior righthander Matthew Struble (Defiance/Edon) fired a 4-hit shutout and freshman first baseman Tim Knezovich (Columbus/Briggs) slammed his first collegiate home run to lift Ohio Wesleyan over Wittenberg in the opener of a North Coast Athletic Conference West Division doubleheader on Saturday at Littick Field.
In the nightcap, senior third baseman Eric McComas (Beverly Hills, Mich./Birmingham Groves) and sophomore outfielder Eric Livingston (Delaware/Hayes) drove in runs as the Bishops closed to within 16-15, but the Tigers stranded the tying run on third base to salvage a split of the twinbill.
The split clinches a spot for Ohio Wesleyan in the upcoming NCAC tournament. The top 2 teams in each division advance to the conference tournament, and Ohio Wesleyan can finish no worse than a tie for second place in the West Division. The Bishops are 10-4 in the division, ahead of Wabash (7-3), Denison (6-6), and Wittenberg (5-7). Wittenberg cannot finish ahead of the Bishops, and while Denison and Ohio Wesleyan could wind up in a tie at 10-6, the Bishops would own a tiebreaker based on their sweep of the season series with the Big Red.
Knezovich crushed a solo homer in the second inning of Saturday's opener, putting the Bishops ahead to stay.
Struble struggled in the early going, loading the bases with one out in the first on 2 walks and a hit batsman before working out of the jam, then allowing leadoff hits in the second and third before stranding both runners at third base. After allowing a leadoff single in the fourth, however, Struble found a groove, retiring 12 of the last 13 Wittenberg batters.
The Bishops added a pair of runs in the fourth on an RBI double by Knezovich, who later came around to score on an error by Tiger third baseman Trent Nutter. Ohio Wesleyan wrapped the scoring in the sixth when McComas scored on an infield out by sophomore second baseman Josh Gardner (Youngstown/Boardman).
Struble finished with 4 strikeouts and did not walk a batter after the first inning.
Zach Spring was the starting and losing pitcher for Wittenberg.
The Bishops took a 3-0 lead in the nightcap as senior shortstop Logan Hronis (Rocky River/St. Edward) doubled in a run in the first and Livingston slammed a 2-run homer in the second.
Wittenberg erupted for 8 runs in the top of the third, with Jason Haunty collecting 2 hits in the inning, including a 2-run single. Ray Noe, Zach Spring, and Michael Yednock also plated runs during the frame.
Ohio Wesleyan answered with 4 runs in the bottom of the inning to cut the deficit to 8-7. The Bishops loaded the bases before collecting a Livingston single, walks to Knezovich and Gardner, and a ground out by freshman second baseman James DiBiasio (Westlake).
The Tigers countered with a 4-run fourth, highlighted by Matt Hampp's bases-loaded triple, but Ohio Wesleyan answered with 4 runs of its own in the bottom of the inning, with DiBiasio's 2-run single the big hit, but once again Wittenberg responded as Yednock's 2-run homer in the top of the fifth helped the Tigers build the lead to 16-11.
DiBiasio singled home a run in the sixth to bring the Bishops within 16-12, and Ohio Wesleyan opened the bottom of the seventh with a walk to sophomore outfielder Zach Frentsos (Delaware/Hayes) and a single by Hronis. After junior catcher Steve Ruygrok (Centennial, Colo./Cherry Creek) struck out for the first out, Wittenberg catcher Haunty threw to second to try to catch Frentsos napping, but the throw went awry and the runners moved up to second and third. McComas grounded out for the second out, scoring Frentsos, and Livingston singled in Hronis to make it 16-14. Knezovich followed with a single, chasing Tiger reliever Manny Rodriguez. Wittenberg's Sam Clement then threw a pitch in the dirt, and Haunty's throw on the play was wild, allowing Livingston to score and Knezovich to take third representing the tying run. Clement came back to strike out sophomore outfielder Zack Kaminski (Pittsburgh, Pa./Mount Lebanon) to end the game.
Hronis and Livingston each went 4-for-5 for the Bishops, with Hronis scoring 3 times and Livingston driving in 4 runs. DiBiasio also plated 4 runs during his 2-for-4 effort.
Freshman lefthander Mason Farr (West Lafayette, Ind.) was the starting and losing pitcher for Ohio Wesleyan, receiving his first loss in 6 decisions this season.
Joel Assenheimer was credited with the win for Wittenberg.