BEREA, OHIO -- The Baldwin-Wallace College baseball team split an Ohio Athletic Conference doubleheader with rival Otterbein College this afternoon (Tuesday, April 27, 2010) at Fishbaugh Field in Westerville. The Yellow Jackets won the first game, 15-9, and the Cardinals captured the nightcap, 8-5. The split left Yellow Jacket Head Coach Bob Fisher one win shy of 700 for his career.
With its split, the Yellow Jackets are now 11-19-1 overall and 5-8-1 in the OAC. With its split, Otterbein is now 17-14 overall and 8-4 in the OAC. After the split, Fisher is now 699-637-14 in his 42-year career. He has already announced his retirement for following this season. The 1963 graduate came to B-W as a student in 1959 and has spent 51 years of his life at the College.
In the first game, the Cardinals built a 3-0 lead after one inning, 4-1 after two and 6-2 after three. In the fourth inning, the Yellow Jackets took a 7-6 lead with a five-run frame. BW then gained a convincing, 14-6 lead with a seven-run fifth. The Yellow Jackets scored their final run in the top of the seventh, and Otterbein countered with three in the bottom of the seventh, but it wasn't enough as Fisher claimed his 699th win.
At the plate, B-W banged out 16 hits with senior rightfielder Ted Cowling (Streetsboro) leading the way with three, including a double and two runs batted-in. In addition, freshman CF Nolan Neuschaefer (Elyria/ Senior),senior second baseman Matt Rollins (Walbridge/ Millbury Lake), senior 3B Jim Martin (Euclid), senior 1BChris Nealon (Avon Lake), senior designated hitter Scott Nealon (Avon Lake) and freshman LF Brendan Toughey (East Amherst, N.Y./ St. Joseph's Collegiate Institute) each had two hits. Toughey scored four runs to lead the team and Neuschaefer, Rollins and Chris Nealon each scored a pair. Martin had the most RBI with three.
On the mound, senior righthander Justin Novak (Strongsville) started and pitched the entire seven innings to gain the win and improve to 4-3 overall. He allowed 13 hits and nine runs (seven earned) and struck out four Otterbein batters and did not allow a walk. The complete game was his fifth of the season.
In the second game, the Yellow Jackets opened the scoring in the top of the first to take a 1-0 lead before Otterbein tied the game at 1-1 with a run of its own in the third. B-W regained the lead at 3-1 with two runs in the sixth and the Cardinals countered with a run in the bottom of that frame to cut the lead to 3-2. Otterbein then gained an 8-3 lead with a six-run seventh. A pair of tallies by the Jackets in the eighth cut the lead to 8-5, but B-W could get no closer as Otterbein earned the split of the twinbill.
At the plate, B-W again outhit Otterbein, 11-9, with Martin getting three, Chris Nealon two, including his third homerun of the season, and senior catcher Matt Bush (Grafton/ Midview) had two. On the mound, freshman righthander Pat Havens (Twinsburg), this week's OAC Pitcher of the Week, started and pitched the first six and two-third innings and took the loss to fall to 1-3 overall. He allowed seven hits and six runs (four earned) and struck out two Cardinal batters and walked five. Havens was followed to the mound by freshman David Redovian (Fairlawn/ Copley) who pitched the rest of the seventh inning and the entire eighth frame.
B-W next plays at home on Thursday, April 29 when it hosts non-league foe Notre Dame College (of Ohio) in a varsity and junior varsity doubleheader at 2:00 p.m.
This Saturday, May 1, B-W will host Muskingum College at 1:00 p.m. in an OAC twinbill that is both B-W Baseball Alumni Day and Bob Fisher Recognition Day. Coach Fisher is retiring at the end of this season, his 42nd. If you would like to attend B-W Baseball Alumni Day, please e-mail either Mark Masey atmassey0713@sbcglobal.net or Guy Fisher at guyfisher@yahoo.com. You also are invited to the BW Baseball Web site on-line at www.bwbaseball.com. It is designed and operated by Guy Fisher.
FOR MORE B-W Sports Information, please contact Sports Information Director Kevin Ruple by telephone at 440-826-2327 and e-mail at kruple@bw.edu or Assistant SID Nick Minerd by phone at 440-826-2780 and e-mail at nminerd@bw.edu. Fans can access the latest B-W athletics information at www.bw.edu/athletics and we invite you to join us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/bwathletics.
