CHARLESTON, West Va. - After a rainy start to Saturday (Feb. 25)'s doubleheader at the Welch Athletic Complex, the Ohio Dominican Panthers baseball team managed a 1-1 day on the road. 

Ohio Dominican won the first game 6-1 before dropping the nightcap 11-6 to the Charleston Golden Eagles. 

GAME ONE

The first inning allowed the Panthers to get an early lead for the second straight game. Michael Knapp (Elyria, Ohio) reached on a two-out error and came around to score on a RBI double by Jack Mathey (Copley, Ohio). 

Charleston tied the game in the bottom of the first as the game was tied until the fifth inning. 

A two-run fifth inning put the Panthers ahead once again. Brennen Hunt (Ashland, Ohio) singled and stole second base, opening the inning. Lane Marshall (Wooster, Ohio) followed with an one-out RBI single to center field, plating Hunt. A balk and walk to Knapp put runners at first and second with one out. Mathey doubled home Marshall for his second RBI two-bagger of the game. ODU led 3-1 as the bottom of the fifth arrived. 

Derek Bolander (Oregon, Ohio) pitched into the fifth inning, facing the first two batters before coming out of the game. Myles Martinez (Columbus, Ohio) entered and worked out of a bases loaded, one-out situation with no damage. 

Bolander pitched four plus innings for his first win of the season. He scattered one run on two hits and five walks. He struck out three batters. 

In the seventh inning, Ohio Dominican capped the game with a three spot. Knapp singled and advanced to second base on a wild pitch. Mathey struck out but an error on the throw to first base allowed Mathey to reach and moved Knapp to third base. Alex Brill (Amherst, Ohio) doubled home both runners for a 5-1 lead. Jordan Daniels (Blacklick, Ohio) got an RBI infield single, allowing Brill to cross the plate.

Martinez earned the save with three shutout innings of work. He got four punchouts and retired nine of the ten batters he faced. 

Mathey ended the game with three hits (two doubles) and two RBI. Seven of the nine starters had hits and combined for eight of ODU's nine hits in the opener. 

GAME TWO

The Golden Eagles got one run on the board in the first inning on two hits before Ohio Dominican responded in the third inning. 

Jake Scherette (Brunswick, Ohio) singled as the leadoff batter. A balk moved him to second and a sacrifice bunt allowed him to get to third base. With two outs, a passed ball brought Scherette in, tying the game on only one ball in play. 

Five runs in the fourth inning gave the host Golden Eagles a 6-1 lead after four frames. 

ODU put a crooked number up in the sixth inning, trimming the lead to 6-5 with the help of some patience. Hunt walked and David Silva (Tontogany, Ohio) followed up with a single to center field. Knapp walked to load the bags before Mathey got a run with a bases loaded walk. A pitching change was made for Charleston. Brill doubled home a pair of runs. Two batters later, Michael O'Callaghan (Morrow, Ohio) reached on an error at first baseman with Mathey scoring from third base. O'Callaghan's RBI put the Panthers down 6-5. 

Charleston scored four runs in the seventh inning, extending the lead to 10-5. 

A wild pitch and error on the same play brought Mathey around to score in the eighth inning for Ohio Dominican. 

After ODU scored in the top half, Charleston capped the scoring in the bottom of the eighth for the final score of 11-6. 

Silva and Daniels each had two hit contests in the nightcap. Silva swiped two bases in the game. 

Michael Lesiecki (Uhrichsville, Ohio) relieved starter Max Whitesell (Dayton, Ohio) with three innings of one-run ball after Whitesell pitched into the fourth inning. Marshall and Brill each pitched one inning of relief work. 

The Panthers will travel to Nashville, Tennessee for a neutral site series against Wayne State (Mich.) next weekend. The Panthers and Warriors will play at Trevecca Nazarene University for four games. The series is slated to be played Saturday (March 4), Sunday (March 5) and Monday (March 6). 

Contact: Tyler Stotsky
stotskyt@ohiodominican.edu