SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - Head Coach Jay Lewis and his Tigers continued to ride their wave of momentum heading into this weekend's pivotal pair of North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) West Division doubleheaders with a 9-7 win over Otterbein. Their second win in as many nights over the Ohio Athletic Conference powerhouse Cardinals included some late-inning drama as Wittenberg staved off an Otterbein rally to pick up their 14th win of the year.
Highlighting the night for the Tigers in his first collegiate start, freshman Brad Prewitt (Westerville, Ohio/South) fired five sterling innings of three-hit baseball. Three strikeouts and three walks joined Prewitt's line on the night. He left the mound with a six-run lead with a possible first career win under his belt.
Then, the Cardinal bats awoke, bringing home six runs in the sixth inning to tie the score. That forced Wittenberg back to work at the plate, where sophomore Ray Noe (Dublin, Ohio/Jerome) jolted the Tigers ahead with the eventual game-winning run on an RBI triple in the eighth. He later came across to provide an insurance run.
Sophomore reliever Manny Rodriguez (Lawrenceville, Ga./Central Gwinnett)made sure that the Tigers would need no more runs as he shut the door with a two-inning save. Junior Darin Mumaw (Fort Loramie, Ohio/Fort Loramie) put out the fire on the first Otterbein charge and picked up the win in the process.
The Tigers roll into weekend play at 14-17 overall and 5-7 in the NCAC West with a doubleheader on Saturday at Carleton Davidson Stadium against the Wabash Little Giants. The first contest kicks off at 1 p.m.
Written by: Ben Bradley, SID Assistant