Cedarville, Ohio – The University of Findlay baseball team improved to 5-1 in Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) play on Friday, March 22, defeating the Cedarville Yellow Jackets in a doubleheader by scores of 4-0 and 11-1. Those two wins give the Oilers, which now have won six straight in the series and have a 27-12 record against CU dating back to 1980, a record of 11-10 overall this season. Cedarville, with the two losses, falls to 4-18 overall and 0-6 in the G-MAC.
Game 1 (W 4-0)
On a chilly afternoon, the day began with a low-scoring affair as neither team could score early in the first contest.
Cedarville had a good opportunity in the second inning, loading the bases with two outs, but a strike out ended the threat.
Two innings later, in the top of the fourth, sophomore Keelan Daniel was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning for UF. Daniel would advance to third on a failed pickoff attempt that was thrown wildly past the Yellow Jackets first baseman. Senior Cam Farrar, Findlay's all-time RBI leader, did what he does best and hit a sacrifice fly to drive in the first run of the game.
Sacrifice flies in the seventh, eighth, and ninth innings by sophomore Casey Maruniak, senior Nate Brooks, and senior Cole Kwiatkowski, respectively, put the Oilers ahead 4-0.
Findlay scored those four runs on seven hits and made no errors while CU had no runs on three hits and made one error.
Senior Logan Bragg put together one of the best outings of his career, throwing a nine-inning complete game. He did not allow a run and gave up just three hits and two walks while striking out eight on 111 pitches.
Senior Andrew Micale was the Oilers' leading hitter in the game as he went 3-for-4 in the contest with a double and a run scored.
Game 2 (W 11-1)
In the nightcap, Findlay wasted no time getting on the board, scoring early and often to take full control of the contest.
Senior Aiden Lao singled to start the game and a hit by pitch to Daniel and single by Farrar loaded the bases. Brooks walked to plate the first run before Maruniak singled to left. The ball was misplayed by the Yellow Jackets' left fielder, allowing all three runs to score and give the Oilers a 4-0 lead.
Farrar, Brooks, and Micale all had RBI singles in the second inning to expand their lead to 8-0. Two more runs in the third had the Oilers with a double-digit cushion at 10-0.
Cedarville did manage a single run in the fifth, but a run by the Oilers in the seventh kept the lead at ten, winning the game 11-1.
Findlay scored their 11 runs on 14 hits and did not make an error. Cedarville had one run on seven hits and one error.
Sophomore Ethan Mohr got his first win of the year, throwing five innings and giving up just one run on six hits and two walks. He struck out six. Freshman Colin Becker came out of the pen to throw two innings. He did not allow a run on one hit.
Offensively, Farrar picked up three hits, three RBI, and two runs scored to lead the Oilers. Lao, Micale, and freshman Nick Palm all had two hits, as well.
Findlay and Cedarville will conclude their four-game series tomorrow, Saturday, March 23.
