Cedarville, Ohio – It was a record-setting day for the University of Findlay baseball team as the Oilers completed a series sweep of the Cedarville Yellow Jackets on Saturday, March 23. In the first game of the day, Findlay picked up a 10-2 victory and, in the series finale, a 34-8 drubbing of the home team wrapped up the four-game set. With those two victories the Oilers are now 13-10 on the year with a 7-1 mark in Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) play while Cedarville falls to 4-20 overall and 0-8 in the conference.
For the Oilers, multiple records were broken thanks to a massive outburst of offense in Game 4. The 34 runs scored in that contest set a new program record, breaking the old record by ten, a 24-run effort against Oakland City back in 2013. It also established a new conference record for runs in a game, surpassing Lake Erie's 31-run game against Fairmont State in 2018.
The finale is also a new record for single-game margin of victory as the 26-run win breaks the old mark of 17 runs which had been done four times in program history.
Prior to this weekend, the record for runs scored in a four-game series stood at 55 which was set in 2010 against Saginaw Valley State. That record also has fallen as the Oilers scored 59 in this series against Cedarville.
The 28 RBI by the Oilers offense in Game 4 of the week are also a new program record, breaking the mark of 20 RBI which came in that same game against Oakland City. Findlay also walked a program record 18 times in that final game.
Game 3 (W 10-2)
Findlay got things rolling quickly in the third game of the series, scoring three runs in the first two innings, two of which came on an RBI double by sophomore Keelan Daniel in the second.
Two more runs in the fourth put Findlay ahead 5-0 and in the fifth, four hits and a pair of errors led to a five-run frame, giving the Orange and Black a double-digit lead at 10-0, a lead they would not relinquish.
In that game, Findlay scored ten runs on 11 hits and made one error while Cedarville scored two runs on three hits and had three errors.
Sophomore Carson Mellott got the win on the hill, tossing six innings and allowing just one run on three hits. He walked three and struck out six.
Daniel had two hits, both doubles, two RBI and two runs scored while senior Andrew Micale and senior Cam Farrar both had two hits. Micale scored a trio of runs in the game, as well while Farrar drove in two.
Farrar now has 187 hits in his career which moves him into third all-time. He needs 13 hits to become just the third player in program history to reach 200 hits and is 31 hits shy of the all-time record of 218 hits set by Rob Talpas (2001-05).
Game 4 (W 34-8)
The series finale got out of hand and brought into play the conference's new run-rule which is implemented in nine-inning games.
Senior Aiden Lao singled to start the game and later scored on a sacrifice fly by Farrar. That was the first of seven runs in the opening frame. Micale, sophomore Theo Winings, and Lao all had RBI hits in that inning.
After a hot start, the onslaught continued with six runs on five hits in the second inning. RBI singles came off the bats of Farrar and Brooks while two runs scored on a dropped fly ball off the bat of Lao.
Fast-forward to the sixth inning with the Oilers leading 24-6, having matched the program record for runs in a game through just five innings. Sophomore Gavyn Smith got things started with a leadoff double and scored on a triple by sophomore Mike Sciortino. That was the first of ten runs scored by the Orange and Black in that inning. Those ten scores came on just four hits as the Oilers took advantage of six walks and a hit by pitch in just the sixth inning alone.
Leading 34-6 at that point, Cedarville managed a pair of runs to end the game but the run-rule remained in effect, ending the game in the seventh inning.
Findlay scored 34 runs on 21 hits and made one error while Cedarville had eight runs on five hits and made four errors. The Oilers also benefited from 18 walks and five hit batters by Yellow Jacket pitching.
Freshman Aidan Kiessling was the beneficiary of the historic offense, picking up his first college win on the mound. He threw 4.1 innings and allowed six runs on four hits. He walked three, hit two batters, and struck out five.
Offensively, Findlay had 16 different players step to the plate in the game. Keelan Daniel led the way, picking up three hits while leading the team with four RBI and four runs scored. Sophomore Ryan Thompson also had three hits, one of which was a double, and four runs scored.
Brooks had two hits, including a double, three RBI and three runs scored to go along with a three RBI and two-run game by Micale.
Findlay is back in action for a pair of games at Tiffin University on Tuesday, March 26. First pitch is slated for 1:00 pm.
