BEREA, OHIO -- The Baldwin-Wallace College baseball team split an Ohio Athletic Conference doubleheader today (Saturday, May 2, 2009) with Wilmington College on Seniors' Day at Heritage Field in Berea. The Yellow Jackets won the first game, 14-2, but dropped the season finale, 13-8 in the nightcap.

 

With the split, the Yellow Jackets finish the season at 19-19 overall and 8-10 in the OAC and have had three 19-win seasons in the past four campaigns. Wilmington finishes its season at 9-24 overall and 5-13 in the OAC.

 
In the first game, the Quakers jumped out to a 2-0 lead with one run in each of the top of the first and second innings. B-W came back to take the lead and break the game open at 12-2 by scoring a dozen runs in the bottom of the fourth inning. Senior two-time All-OAC first baseman Riley Kreisher (Conneaut/ Ashtabula Edgewood) led off the inning with an infield single and then scored on a double by junior designated hitter Scott Nealon (Avon Lake). Nealon then scored the second run of the frame when junior leftfeilder Ted Cowling (Streetsboro) singled him home. Following a double by senior 3B Jake Gross (West Farmington/ Warren Champion) that sent Cowling to third, senior two-time Academic All-OAC RF Mike Brisky (Berea)singled home Cowling and moved Gross to third. After a walk to junior catcher Matt Bush (Grafton/ Midview)loaded the bases and a Quaker pitching change, junior shortstop Jim Martin (Euclid) singled home Gross and again loaded the bases. The highlight of the inning then came when senior ESPN THE MAGAZINE Academic All-American Cody Kidd (Wellington) hit a grand slam homerun, his third homer of the season. Following Kidd's blast, junior 2B Matt Rollins (Walbridge/ Millbury Lake) singled, then scored when Kreisher laced a triple for his 57th run batted-in this season and second hit in the inning. Following a Nealon RBI groundout that scored Kreisher, Cowling laced a double for his second hit of the inning. Then Brisky reached first base via an error and Cowling advanced to third. Brisky then stole second and on the next pitch, he and Cowlingscored on a single by Bush.

 

The Yellow Jackets added to their lead in the fifth when Kreisher had his third hit in two innings with a double, and he scored one batter later when Scott Nealon blasted his first homer of the season.

 

Offensively, B-W's 14 runs stand as the third most this season, behind a 19-0 win against the University of Dubuque (Iowa) and a 17-8 thrashing of then No.-7 ranked The College of Wooster.  The three-four-five hitters,Kreisher, Nealon and Cowling, combined to go seven-for-12 with seven total runs and six more RBI. Kreisher tallied three hits, while Cowling and Nealon each had two.  In addition, Nealon, along with Kidd, who went one-for-four with a grandslam and one run scored, each drove in four runs.  Bush also plated two runs and scored another in a one-four-three outing.

 

On the mound, senior Academic All-OAC righthander and 2009 Clyde Lamb Award recipient Brandon Fredericks (Copley/ Richfield Revere) pitched a complete game and earned his fifth win of the season and now stands at 5-4.  He gave up just two runs (both earned) and scattered five hits over seven innings and also struck out three batters.

 

In the nightcap, the Yellow Jackets opened a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning. The Quakers tied the game with three runs in the top of the fourth to make it 3-3, increased their lead to 8-3 with a five-run fifth inning, led 11-3 when they scored three more runs in the sixth, and built a 12-3 advantage with another run in the top of the seventh. B-W cut the deficit to 12-5 with two runs in the bottom of the seventh.  Wilmington scored its final run in the eighth and B-W scored its final three runs in the ninth to make the final count 13-8.

 

Offensively, B-W was led by Scott Nealon and Brisky with three hits each and Kidd, Kreisher and junior outfielder/ designated hitter Chris Nealon (Avon Lake) each had a pair of base hits.

 

On the mound, senior righty Jim Jaskowak (Grove City, Pa./ Grove City) started and pitched the first four-plus innings and was tagged with the loss to fall to 3-5 overall.  He was followed to the mount by junior rightyJustin Novak (Strongsville) in the fifth and freshman righthander Collin Wright (Lorain/ Admiral King) in the seventh. BW hurlers struck out five Quakers and did not allow a walk.

 

Both Kidd and Kreisher end their careers as the holders of several school single-season and career records. Kidd is the College's all-time leader in hits (184), runs scored (143), triples (14), hit-by-pitches (25).  He also holds single-season records for runs scored (52; 2009), triples, (six; 2009)) and hit-by-pitches (13; 2007), and has had more stolen bases (62) and the highest batting average (.387) than any Yellow Jacket during the 2000's (2000-2009).  During his four-year career, Kreisher set single-season records with 58 RBI this season  and tied former first baseman Pat Shannon's '03 record for doubles with 18 in 2008.  He also set the single-season record for put-outs in 2008 with 314, and holds the school's all-time record with 361 put outs.

 

Kidd also ends the season as the team leader at the plate with a .413 average (62-for-150) and is followed byRollins with .367 (33-for-90) and Scott Nealon with .360 (40-for-111), among four other hitters with .300-plus averages.  Kidd also led with 23 stolen bases and an .492 on-base percentage. Kreisher led the team with 58 RBI, 27 extra base hits (14 2B, three 3B, 10 HR), slugging percentage (.707) and sacrifice flies (seven).

 

Among the pitching staff, Fredericks' five wins, 52.1 innings pitched, 32 strikeouts and three complete games led the team. Junior righty Scott Luthman (Celina) and Novak's 5.02 earned run average topped all starters and freshman righthander Collin Wright (Lorain/ Admiral King) led all relievers with 10 or more innings pitched with a 3.00 ERA.

 

FOR MORE INFORMATION, please contact Sports Information Director Kevin Ruple by telephone at (440) 826-2327 and via e-mail at kruple@bw.edu or Assistant SID Nick Minerd by phone at (440) 826-2780 and via e-mail at nminerd@bw.edu.  To contact Head Coach Bob Fisher, please call him at (440) 826-2182 in his office and e-mail him at rfisher@bw.edu.  More information may be accessed on the B-W athletics page atwww.bw.edu/athletics.