COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio Dominican's baseball team held a 3-2 lead in the seventh inning of game two against Lake Erie but couldn't make it stand up as the Panthers fell 6-4 in the nightcap of Wednesday's GLIAC doubleheader. The Storm claimed a 5-1 victory in the first game.

Lake Erie needed just two hits in the final inning of the second game to score its four runs, taking advantage of two walks, a hit batter and an ODU throwing error to account for its tallies.

The Panthers would threaten to tie or win the game in the seventh with their own rally, though. With two down and none on, sophomore Anthony Raschilla (Girard, Ohio) lined an 0-2 pitch back up the middle for a basehit. Senior Evan Shaw (Delaware, Ohio), also down in the count 1-2, smacked a double down the left field line put two in scoring position. Sophomore Bryan Rudolph (Pickerington, Ohio) then hit a ball to third base that appeared to end the game, but the throw was in the dirt and pinch-runner Jerry McCartney (Westerville, Ohio) scored to make it 6-4.

Senior John Bowron (Dayton, Ohio), also behind in the count, was hit by a pitch to load the bases, but a fly out to right field ended ODU's rally.

With the two defeats, ODU fell to 16-14 on the season (8-8 GLIAC), while the Storm improved to 15-14 (11-5 GLIAC).

The Panthers had jumped to a 2-0 lead in that second game, with Raschilla cranking a two-run blast over the wall in right for his first home run of the season and third for his career.

Junior righty Nick Venditti (Brecksville, Ohio), who retired the first six hitters he faced, ran into trouble in the third, walking the leadoff hitter and eventually allowing two runs to tie it. He did, however, strand three runners, closing the inning with a strikeout and a groundout to Raschilla at first to keep the game knotted at two.

After being set down in order in the third and fourth innings, freshman John Simindinger (Lima, Ohio) singled with one out in the fifth, and with two outs went to third on a hit-and-run single off the bat of junior Chase Westphal (Brecksville, Ohio). Redshirt sophomore Christian Prince (Hudsonville, Mich.) walked to load the bases, and Simindinger would come in to score on a wild pitch to give ODU the lead at 3-2.

However, the Panthers would do no more damage in the inning, and Lake Erie would rally for the win in the seventh.

ODU out-hit Lake Erie 10-5 in the game, with Raschilla and freshman Austin Butler (Pickerington, Ohio) both registering a pair of hits to lead the attack.

Venditti did not earn a decision, working six solid innings, allowing just three hits and the two runs in the third. He struck out five and walked just one in an 84-pitch outing.

In the opener, the Panthers could never recover from a three-run first inning by the Storm in dropping the 5-1 decision.

Lake Erie scored its three runs on a pair of hits but took advantage of a pair of one-out walks to set up the scoring. ODU's bats remained quiet until the sixth inning, when junior Ryan Rovnak (Poland, Ohio) singled and Prince walked with no one out.

Raschilla lined into a double play, which appeared to halt the momentum, but freshman Kyle Tisdale (Uniontown, Ohio) walked and Westphal smacked a single through the right side to bring in Prince and make it a 3-1 game.

However, the Panthers would leave two on board that inning, and the Storm earned some breathing room with two more runs in the seventh to take the opener.

Ohio Dominican continues GLIAC play with a four-game series against Wayne State at home, starting at 1 p.m. Saturday with a doubleheader.

Contact: Scott Miles
miless@ohiodominican.edu