Baseball Continues Winning Ways, Sweeps Conference-Leading Ky. Wesleyan

On Apr 27, 2021

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio Dominican baseball team continued its strong run over the back half of April, sweeping Kentucky Wesleyan in Tuesday’s home doubleheader, 7-5 and 4-2.

Ohio Dominican has now won eight of its last 10 outings, including seven of the last eight games played. The Panthers improve to 23-9 overall and 15-9 in Great Midwest play. The 23 wins are the most of any team in the conference this spring. With the doubleheader sweep, ODU moves into a tie for fourth in the conference standings with Tiffin.

Kentucky Wesleyan entered the day tied for first in the G-MAC standings but drop to second place behind Trevecca Nazarene, now with a 16-4 mark. The Purple Panthers are 19-9 overall this spring.

BOX SCORE NOTES

Junior Thomas Staab (Bellville, Ohio) was announced as the G-MAC Player of the Week during the doubleheader against KWC, and continued his impressive stretch at the plate, going 5-for-8 with a team-best four runs scored.
A pair of multi-hit games gives the junior a team-high 14 such performances this season, with Game One on Tuesday going down as his fourth outing with three-plus hits.
Sophomore David Silva (Tontogany, Ohio) used a 3-for-4 effort in the Game Two to finish the day with a .500 average (4-8).
Silva has now reached base safely in 25 consecutive games, the best such streak on the team this season.
Silva and classmate Alex Brill (Amherst, Ohio) each drove in four runs over the twin bill.
Brill collected three hits at the plate, while also locking down his second save of the season in the nightcap.

GAME ONE SUMMARY

Ohio Dominican posted nine of its 11 hits over the first four innings of play and led KWC 5-3.
Brill drove in two with a double in the first inning and went yard in the third to lead the early offensive attack for ODU.
Staab’s third hit of the game came with two outs in the bottom of the fourth, as his triple scored freshman Lane Marshall (Wooster, Ohio).
Junior Billy Criblez (Mantua, Ohio) drew his first career start, going 4.0 innings, allowing two earned runs in a no decision.
Redshirt freshman Myles Martinez (Columbus, Ohio) was the first of three relievers for ODU, conceding two runs over a season-long 3.1 innings of work. Martinez also registered a season-best four strikeouts against KWC.
With ODU leading by two runs, redshirt freshman Tyler Sullivan (Cincinnati, Ohio) entered the game. Sullivan, with runners on the corners, struck out one and induced a ground out to preserve the 7-5 advantage through 7.5 innings of play.
Freshman Scott Rouse (Hinckley, Ohio) made his first collegiate appearance out of the bullpen, facing just four batters, allowing no runs to earn the save.
ODU held an 11-9 edge in the hit column, with KWC also leaving eight runners stranded to the Panthers’ three.
Three batters for the Black & Gold registered multi-hit performance — Stabb, Brill and graduate senior Roger Danison (Carroll, Ohio).

GAME TWO SUMMARY

ODU outhit KWC 12-2 in the nightcap but left nine runners stranded over seven innings.
The Panthers tagged KWC with two runs in the bottom of the first and two more in the sixth to secure the win.
Graduate senior Jace Komminsk (Westerville, Ohio) belted a two-run homer in the bottom of the first, as four of the first five batters the Panthers sent to the plate in the inning reached via a hit.
ODU recorded a hit in seven of its first 14 at-bats in Game Two, but still only led 2-1 after three complete.
KWC scored once in the third and the fourth to tie the game at 2-all. Both runs were scored with two outs in the frame.
Junior Jake Daniel (Troy, Ohio) and Staab posted one-out singles in the bottom of the sixth and after a fly out, Silva came up clutch for the second time in three days.
Silva, who had a walk-off base hit in Sunday’s 3-2 win over Walsh, roped a double to the center field wall to bring home the final two runs of the game.
Freshman Derek Bolander (Oregon, Ohio) earned his first collegiate win, throwing 2.1 innings in relief.
Bolander did not allow a hit during his appearance.
Brill entered in the top of the seventh to close out the game for ODU, and despite a pair of walks, was able to pitch out of the inning unscathed, while striking out two batters.

UP NEXT

The final four-game series currently scheduled for ODU will be against Lake Erie this Friday and Saturday, April 30, and May 1.
First pitch for both doubleheaders is slated for noon in Panther Valley.

Contact: Tyler Jester

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