WINTER HAVEN, Fla. – Wittenberg baseball moved to .500 through two games with a 9-5 win over Coe on the second day of action from the RussMatt Invitational on Monday.
The Tigers trailed 1-0 through four innings before posting a six-run fifth to take a comfortable lead. In the seventh, Wittenberg added three runs and Coe managed two in both the seventh and the ninth.
Tiger starting pitcher junior Jordan Hitt (South Charleston, Ohio/Southeastern) provided perhaps the most important service he could during a lengthy Spring Break trip – soaking up some innings in an effective manner. He went seven frames for the win and allowed seven hits to score just three runs, all earned, on five strikeouts and four walks. Senior Frank Sullivan (Milford, Ohio/Milford) picked up the last two innings and allowed two runs on two hits, three strikeouts and one walk.
Hitt's extended stay on the mound will help the Tiger pitching staff manage a schedule that has them playing five games over the next five days, with Mount St. Joseph up next at 3:30 p.m. tomorrow, Tuesday, March 10.
The fifth-inning rally was triggered by a hit-by-pitch for sophomore Cal Slusarz (Chesterland, Ohio/West Geauga) to push senior Mike Burgher (Birmingham, Mich./Seaholm) across. Burgher had singled before sophomore Trent Champlin (Gahanna, Ohio/Lincoln) also singled and senior Zac Wilson (Eaton, Ohio/Eaton) walked to load the bases as Coe's staff finally broke after bending several times in preceding innings.
After Slusarz took one for the team, sophomore Dalton Boucher (Granville, Ohio/Granville) cleared the bags with a right-field triple, coming around to score himself on a base hit by junior Will Cousins (Medfield, Mass./Medfield). Cousins capitalized on a shaken pitcher by advancing from first to third on wild pitches before scoring on an infield error.
In the seventh inning, junior Corey Farnbauch (Hilliard, Ohio/Davidson) scored Cousins on an infield single and sophomore Josh Kaplan (Northbrook, Ill./Glenbrook North) scored on another infield error before Farnbauch crossed thanks to a Burgher single.
For the game, Cousins had the stroke with a 4-for-5 line plus an RBI and two runs scored. Boucher pushed across the three runs and finished 2-for-5, while Slusarz was 2-for-4 to match Burgher, each with an RBI. Farnbauch was 1-for-4 on the game with a walk and an RBI.
John Strawn '07