SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - The Wittenberg Tigers got their North Coast Athletic Conference season off to a rocky start Wednesday with a doubleheader sweep against one of the top teams in the preseason poll, Ohio Wesleyan. The Battling Bishops banged out an 8-2 victory in the opener and then stunned the Tigers with a three-run rally in the seventh inning to capture a 4-3 win in the nightcap.
The losses left the Tigers with a 10-12 overall record and broke a modest four-game winning streak. They will have to pick themselves up off the mat in a hurry, however, as another title contender, Allegheny, comes calling on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Betty Dillahunt Field. Ohio Wesleyan took an early lead in the NCAC with records of 15-9 overall and 2-0 in conference.
The opener was dominated by the Bishops, who got a fine pitching performance from Claire Martin. She scattered three hits and two walks as the Tigers managed to scratch out just two unearned runs. Two of the Tigers' three hits came courtesy of sophomore Sarah Fetters, who collected a pair of doubles. On the other side, the Tigers had no answers for the powerful Bishop offense, which had five extra-base hits out of nine total, including two home runs and five RBI from Sarah Downs.
Game 2 may be one that the Tigers look back on in the future with tremendous regret. Led by freshman pitcher Rachael Hatcher, Wittenberg kept OWU in check offensively through the first six innings and took a 3-1 lead in the fifth inning on an RBI base hit by sophomore Nicole Ottavi and an error by the OWU shortstop. But in the top of the seventh, the Bishops struck again, keyed by a two-run double off the bat of Downs.
Hatcher went the distance, allowing eight hits, three walks and four earned runs. Offensively, junior Grace Wigton had a fine game with a pair of hits and junior Erin Collinsworth finished with two hits and two runs scored.