Port Charlotte, Florida – The Wittenberg University Baseball Team ended its Spring Break trip in the Sunshine State in dramatic fashion on Friday afternoon as freshman Ben Seibert smacked a single over the right fielders' head with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 9th to break a 2-2 tie and give the Tigers a 3-2 win over Misericordia.
With the win, the Tigers finished their six-game trip in Florida with an even 3-3 record, posting wins over Lebanon Valley (PA), 8-0, Mitchell (CT), 7-5, and Misericordia (PA), 3-2, while the losses came against Misericordia, 18-11, Swarthmore (PA), 16-15, and Lebanon Valley, 15-5.
Sophomore right-hander Austin Luther got the nod on the hill for the Tigers against the Cougars and he didn't disappoint as he struck out a career-high nine batters and allowed just three hits and one earned run over 7.0 innings of work. Despite the dominant performance, Luther was credited with a no decision in the game as the Cougars were able to push across the game-tying run in the top of the ninth inning off of junior right-hander Justin Maynard.
The lone run that Luther allowed came in unique fashion in the top of the first inning. After a leadoff double to kick off the game, the second batter hit a deep fly to right-center that sophomore Connor O'Malley was able to track down and make a diving catch toward the wall. The leadoff hitter took advantage of the situation and was able to come around and score from second to give Misericordia the early 1-0 lead.
After a scoreless first for the Tigers, they struck for two runs in the bottom of the second on a two-run single to left field off the bat of sophomore Ian Ash that plated Seibert and sophomore catcher Parker Gryskevich.
The game turned into an old-fashioned pitcher's duel from that point on as Luther and Misericordia starter Tyler Leonard combined to hang zeros on the board over the course of the next five innings to give Wittenberg a 2-1 lead heading into the ninth inning.
Misericordia pushed their run across in the top of the ninth on a two-out single to left field off the bat of Josh Burger, setting up the late-game heroics for the Tigers.
Senior Mason Davis led off the bottom of the ninth with a pinch-hit double to left field, while junior Dylan Jackson followed by drawing a walk to give the Tigers runners on first and second with no outs. Gryskevich than laced a single to left that was hit to hard to allow pinch-runner Lane Johnson to score from second, but it would be a moot point in the next at bat as Seibert stepped up to the plate and served a single over the right fielder's head to bring home the game-winning run for the Tigers.
Ash led the Tigers by going 3-for-4 at the plate, which included the two-run single in the second, while junior Austin Morrow added two bunt hits and Seibert finished the game by going 2-for-4 at the plate with the game-winning RBI and another run scored.
Maynard was credited with the win on the mound after striking out one and allowing the one earned run on one hit over the final 2.0 innings of the game.
Up Next
The Tigers will waste little time in getting back to action as they are set to travel to Earlham (IN) on Wednesday night for a 7:00 p.m. nine-inning game. Wittenberg then opens the home portion of its schedule over the weekend with a three-game series against Alma (MI). The two squads will play a doubleheader on Saturday (3/19) beginning at 12:00 p.m., while Sunday's nine-inning game is scheduled for a 12:00 p.m. start at Carleton Davidson Stadium.