Tigers Take Two From Earlham On NCAC Opening Day
The Wittenberg baseball team lifted two all-important North Coast Athletic Conference wins off of Earlham in a doubleheader on Saturday, winning by scores of 15-4 and 9-4 to move to 6-4 overall and 2-0 in the NCAC West Division.
RICHMOND, Ind. - The Wittenberg baseball team lifted two all-important North Coast Athletic Conference wins off of Earlham in a doubleheader on Saturday, winning by scores of 15-4 and 9-4 to move to 6-4 overall and 2-0 in the NCAC West Division.
The Tigers were 2-0 in the NCAC West following two similar wins over Earlham in 2009, but in 2010 are 6-4 overall versus their 4-7 overall record from 2009 at the same point in the schedule.
The wins came on strong outings from the Tiger pitching staff. Junior Zach Spring (Powell, Ohio/Olentangy Liberty) went five innings and allowed four runs on seven hits, using five strikeouts to overcome five walks on his way to the win in Game 1 (15-4), which brought him to 1-1 on the season. The Quakers were stifled by an inning of relief each from freshman Kevin Tolle (Englewood, Ohio/Northmont) and senior right hander Chris Green (Cincinnati, Ohio/LaSalle). Both kept Earlham scoreless, Tolle on one hit and a walk and Green on one hit and two strikeouts.
Senior Bobby Ciucki (Dublin, Ohio/Coffman) started Game 2 and took home the win in five innings of work, allowing nine hits to score four runs, three earned, on three strikeouts and three walks. Tiger senior closer Darrin Mumaw (Fort Loramie, Ohio/Fort Loramie) took over in the sixth with a 7-4 lead and pitched two scoreless innings to earn his second save of the season. He allowed just two hits and struck out two.
In the Tigers' 15-4 win in Game 1, they jumped out to a quick 7-1 lead through two innings, then added one in the fourth and seven in the final two frames. Junior leftfielder Ray Noe (Dublin, Ohio/Jerome) and junior third baseman Stefan Kegler (Columbus, Ohio/Thomas Worthington) each knocked in three runs, Noe on 3-for-5 hitting and Kegler on 2-for-3.
The best line came from junior designated hitter Mike Yednock (Worthington, Ohio/Thomas Worthington), who not only reached base in all five at bats on 3-for-3 batting and two walks, but also scored every time. His batting totals included a leadoff home run in the fourth inning and an RBI double in the sixth for two RBIs in the game. Yednock is now batting .429 on the season with a .488 on-base percentage and a .714 slugging percentage.
In Game 1, senior catcher A.J. Bush (Troy, Ohio/Troy) went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and sophomore first baseman Matt Hampp (Hilliard, Ohio/Davidson) drove in two on 1-for-5 hitting.
Game 2 featured a 1.000 outing from junior catcher Jason Haunty (Worthington, Ohio/Thomas Worthington), who went 4-for-4 at the plate with a second inning leadoff home run and three singles, scoring three times in the game. Kegler again figured out the Earlham pitching with two doubles for three RBIs in 2-for-4 hitting.
Freshman second baseman Zac Daniels (Hilliard, Ohio/Davidson) also doubled as part of his 3-for-4 day, driving in one and scoring once himself. Freshman shortstop Grant Goodwin (Hilliard, Ohio/Davidson) was 2-for-2 with two RBIs and a sacrifice hit, while Yednock and freshman center fielder Nick Van Dyne (Hilliard, Ohio/Davidson) each drove in a run.
On Sunday, March 21, the Tigers will square off with the Earlham in their final regular season meeting as conference opponents at Noon in Richmond. The Quakers will depart the NCAC for the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference following the conclusion of the 2010-11 academic year.
Written by: John Strawn '07