MARIETTA, Ohio – Ohio Dominican head baseball coach Christopher Antonides recorded his 100th career coaching victory Saturday afternoon, as the Panthers earned a doubleheader sweep over Fairmont State 11-6 and 12-5.

Antonides is in his fifth season at the helm for the Panthers and the Game One win on Saturday marked his 100th victory. Under Antonides, the Panthers are now 101-75 overall, including a pair of 30-plus win seasons and a NCAA regional runner-up finish in 2018.

With the sweep on Saturday, Ohio Dominican improves to 6-0 to start the 2021 campaign. On a day with coaching milestone victories, it was also fitting the Panthers set a new NCAA Division II era record for its longest winning streak to start a season.

BOX SCORE NOTES

• For the second and third times this season, ODU posted double digit runs in a single game. The Panthers totaled 23 hits over the two games, outhitting the Fighting Falcons (0-2) by five.
• Saturday saw the Black & Gold hit .404 as a team, with senior Jace Komminsk (Westerville, Ohio) leading the way, going 5-for-6. Komminsk added six RBI, five runs, two doubles and hit his first home run of the season in Game One.
• Sophomores Alex Brill (Amherst, Ohio) and Derek Kutrubs (Brunswick, Ohio) each posted three hits over the twin bill as well. Brill went 3-for-4 in the opener, where he scored three of his five runs. Kutrubs finished 3-for-6 at the plate and added four RBI and three runs.
• Ohio Dominican entered the weekend leading the nation with 5.50 steals per game and added seven more on Saturday. Junior Thomas Staab (Bellville, Ohio) led the team by going a perfect 3-for-3 on the bases.
• Both Panther starting pitchers picked up wins. Freshman Scott Rouse (Hinckley, Ohio) tossed the opener for the second consecutive weekend, this time pitching a complete game, allowing three earned runs, and striking out seven.
• Junior Brandon Hofacre (Chardon, Ohio) started the second game and also struck out seven batters over 5.0 innings. Redshirt freshman Tyler Sullivan (Cincinnati, Ohio) pitched the final two innings in the night cap, conceding just one hit and no runs.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

• Fairmont State jumped on the Panthers for four runs in the first 2.5 innings of Game One to lead 4-2. A Kutrubs triple to right field highlighted ODU's two-run second inning.
• In the bottom of the third frame, the Black & Gold scored five runs on six hits and capitalized on two FSU errors. The first three Panthers at the plate reached safely, with sophomore Brennen Hunt (Ashland, Ohio) leading off with a triple.
• Ohio Dominican sent 10 batters to the plate in the third inning and eventually led 7-4 at the frame's conclusion.
• The Fighting Falcons scored once each in the fourth and sixth innings to close the ODU lead to just one run, 7-6.
• Reigning G-MAC Player of the Week, sophomore David Silva (Tontogany, Ohio), hit a clutch two-out double in the bottom of the sixth to score a pair of runs. Komminsk then followed in the next at-bat with a long ball to put ODU in front for good, 11-6.
• Both teams did most of their offensive damage in Game Two between the second and fourth innings. Headlined by a five-run second, ODU led10-5 after four complete.
• Six different Panther players drove in runs during the three-inning stretch, including Komminsk with three RBI on a base hit and double to left field.
• Another sixth inning rally gave the Panthers their final two runs of the game. Kutrubs hit a sac fly and junior Zac Wilson (Hamilton, Ohio) followed with a base hit to score Brill and Silva, respectively.

UP NEXT

• Ohio Dominican and Fairmont State will conclude their four-game neutral site series at Marietta College on Sunday, March 7.
• The Panthers and Falcons are set a 2 p.m. doubleheader start.

Contact: Tyler Jester

jestert@ohiodominican.edu