Canton, Ohio – The University of Findlay baseball team, ranked ninth in the Midwest Region in the most recent National College Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) regional poll, dominated in a doubleheader on Saturday, April 6 against the Malone Pioneers. The Oilers outscored MU 22-0 on the day, winning 10-0 in the opener and 12-0 in the nightcap. Those two wins give UF a record of 17-13 on the year with an 11-4 mark in Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) play while Malone falls to 4-26 overall and 1-14 in the league.
Game 1 (W 10-0 – 8 inn.)
It didn't take long for the Oilers to take a lead, scoring three runs in the second inning on RBI singles from seniors Cole Kwiatkowski and Aiden Lao. Four innings later, a two-run blast off the bat of Kwiatkowski made it 5-0 in favor of the visitors.
It was not until the eighth inning that things got out of hand, calling the run-rule into effect. Maruniak led off with a single and sophomore Andrew Williams was hit by a pitch. An error by Malone allowed the first run to score and a single by freshman Nick Palm sent another run home. RBI singles by Lao and senior Cam Farrar put the Oilers up by nine. The final nail in the coffin was a sacrifice fly from senior Nate Brooks, making the score 10-0.
Malone went 1-2-3 in the bottom of the eighth, ending the scheduled nine-inning affair one inning early.
Picking up the win on the mound was senior Logan Bragg who now has a record of 4-2 on the year. In his second complete game this season, Bragg tossed eight innings and allowed just three hits, striking out six on just 84 pitches. The senior from Newark, Ohio was dominant as the only runner to reach second base came on a double in the first inning.
Game 2 (W 12-0)
The second contest was a good one through three innings, but one frame changed everything.
Findlay loaded the bases in the third, but came up empty. The next inning more than made up for that missed opportunity. Brooks walked to start the frame and was followed by a big fly by Maruniak. The Oilers quickly loaded the bases and scored two more runs on a sacrifice fly by Lao and a walk by Farrar. Another walk and a single made the score 7-0, although UF did leave the bases loaded for a second consecutive inning.
Four more runs in the fifth inning and one in the sixth put the Oilers ahead by a score of 12-0, the number that would end up being the final tally. It could have been worse as Findlay stranded 11 runners on base including leaving the bases loaded three times.
Sophomore Ethan Mohr improved to 2-0 on the mound, throwing five innings in the start. He allowed just one hit in the game. Freshman Colin Becker and William Rouse each picked up an inning out of the bullpen and neither allowed a hit as the trio of arms combined for a one-hitter.
Offensively, Maruniak was the standout as he picked up six base hits including a home run. He had five RBI and two runs scored. Kwiatkowski had three hits on the day and added three RBI and a team-high five runs scored in the doubleheader.
Farrar, who now has 196 hits in his career, had three knocks, two runs, and three RBI on the day. Lao chipped in five RBI while Palm had two hits and four runs scored.
The Oilers will wrap up the series with Malone tomorrow, Sunday, April 7.
