NORTH CANTON, Ohio - The Ohio Dominican Panthers (8-7, 1-3 G-MAC) opened Great Midwest play this weekend with a four-game series against the Walsh Cavaliers (10-6, 3-1 G-MAC). 

Walsh started the series with three straight wins, including wins of 10-0 and 8-1 on Saturday (March 16). The luck shifted for the Panthers as they split the Sunday (March 17) doubleheader with two games of 12-9. The Cavaliers took the first game with ODU avoiding the sweep in game two. 

Saturday - Game 1 (L, 10-0 in 7 innings)

Walsh scored one run in the first inning and added three more runs in the second inning. In the seventh inning, the Cavaliers added six runs to end the game after seven innings with a 10-0 final score. 

Four different Panthers had a single in the game with Lane Marshall (Wooster, Ohio) stealing two bases after his sixth inning single. 

Saturday - Game 2 (L, 8-1 in 7 innings)

The game was scoreless until a five-run third inning for the Cavaliers opened the scoring. Jack Mathey (Copley, Ohio) blasted a solo home run in the next inning, getting the Panthers on board to trail 5-1. Walsh added three more runs in the fifth inning as the scoring ended 8-1. 

Jake Scherette (Brunswick, Ohio) had two singles. Jordan Daniels (Blacklick, Ohio) singled and walked as well as stole a base. Drew Emerson (Germantown, Ohio) doubled in the fourth with Mathey's home run. 

Chance Woods (Columbus, Ohio) closed out the game with one and one third innings of scoreless relief work. 

Sunday - Game 1 (L, 12-9 in 7 innings)

Sunday's first game was a back and forth affair with a ton of offense on the board. Ohio Dominican started the game with a bang as Mathey struck again with a three-run home run to left center field in the first inning after a hit batter and single. Walsh scored eight runs in the bottom of the first inning to take an 8-3 lead. 

Two walks in the second inning from Brennen Hunt (Ashland, Ohio) and Peter Jelenic (Medina, Ohio) both came around to score. Hunt scored on a wild pitch and Jelenic crossed the plate on a RBI double from Mathey. Ohio Dominican trimmed the lead to 8-5 but then Walsh added a response run in the bottom of the second and led 9-5. 

The Panthers used a three-run third to get back within a run. A RBI single by CJ Dean (Columbus, Ohio) and a two-run double from Jelenic got ODU within 9-8. 

Following a Walsh home run in the third, Spencer Tammaro (New Albany, Ohio) led off the fourth with a triple and scored on a sacrifice fly by Scherette as the score was 10-9, still with Walsh leading. 

The Cavaliers scored two final runs in the fifth and took the third game of the series 12-9. 

Mathey accounted for two extra base hits and four runs batted in - a part of ODU's eight hits in the game. Tammaro added a pair of extra-base hits. Six of the Panthers hits were extra-base knocks. B. Hunt scored twice after reaching base three times. 

Andrew Deyhle (Cincinnati, Ohio) went three and one third innings out of the bullpen, allowing three runs with four strikeouts. Max Whitesell (Dayton, Ohio) pitched two innings of relief work with one run allowed with three strikeouts. 

Sunday - Game 2 (W, 12-9)

The Panthers sent ten batters to the plate in the third inning as they piled on seven runs on six hits. Six straight batters reached to open the inning. Jacob Adams (Troy, Ohio) led off with a double as B. Hunt followed with a single. Jelenic singled home Adams and Daniels continued the trend with an infield RBI single. A walk from Marshall loaded the bases as Tammaro drilled a grand slam down the right field line. Two batters later, Gianni Passarelli (Delaware, Ohio) went deep to left center field with a solo shot.

Walsh scored six runs in the bottom of the third inning as the game was 7-6 going to the fourth inning. A single, walk and a hit by pitch loaded the bases with no outs. Marshall and Michael McFadden (Brunswick, Ohio) drove home runs with fielder's choices and Passarelli capped the inning with a RBI single. The Panthers led 10-6 and held that lead until the sixth inning. 

Two runs in the Walsh sixth inning closed the gap to 10-8 as the game shifted to the final three innings. Tammaro scored a run with a sacrifice fly in the eighth inning before Walsh hit a solo home run in the bottom of the eighth. 

Adams hit a solo home run in the ninth inning as Ohio Dominican avoided the sweep with a 12-9 win in the series finale. 

With 14 hits, Daniels and B. Hunt both had three hits as Passarelli and Adams added two hits. Tammaro plated five runs on the afternoon. Five different players (Daniels, Marshall, Adams, B. Hunt, Jelenic) scored two runs each. 

Chase Hunt (Ashland, Ohio) struck out six batters in his four and two third innings with six runs surrendered. Derek Bolander (Oregon, Ohio) fanned four batters with two runs allowed in one and two third innings pitched. Marshall pitched his first inning of the season, giving up one run. Whitesell got the save with 1.2 innings pitched of scoreless ball. 

Ohio Dominican will travel to Wheeling on Wednesday (March 20) for a single game at 3:00 PM.