Ohio continued its winning ways Tuesday against Youngstown State as it sent the Penguins sliding for their 10th straight loss.
The Bobcats (19-17, 8-4 Mid-American Conference) ran out to an early lead en route to an 8-3 victory that began with a first-inning RBI double from freshman left fielder Tyler Wells.
Ohio lit up the scoreboard again in the fourth inning, when freshman catcher Cody Gaertner smacked a two-run homer that scored junior third baseman Dan Schmidt.
Gaertner had perhaps his best offensive showing of the season, going 3-for-5, including the two-run dinger and a pair of runs scored.
“Cody ... is starting to square more up and instead of getting under the ball, he’s driving through and squaring it up,” said Ohio coach Joe Carbone.
Youngstown State began to climb back in the bottom of the frame, however, scoring one run apiece in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings to even the game 3-3.
But the Bobcats remained resilient, scoring a run in the seventh, three in the eighth and another in the ninth for the 8-3 win.
The Bobcats have now won eight of their last 11 games. But they have not been as successful against non-conference competition, winning only 11 of 23 on the season.
Last Tuesday, the Bobcats gave Ohio State a run for its money in a close 6-5 loss behind the efforts of a solid relief corps that held the Buckeyes to a single run in nearly six innings of work.
Sophomore reliever Sean Kennedy, who tossed a scoreless 2-1/3 innings against the Buckeyes, was again a reliable reliever. He pitched another 2-1/3 innings and allowed only one earned run.
Junior Marck Paliotto closed out the game, while sophomore Shane Henkel and senior Shane Dedig combined for a scoreless inning.
Carbone said that he was pleased with his staff’s outing. He noted that the pitchers gave the team a chance to win despite Ohio’s spotty hitting early on.
The Bobcats had only three hits through the first six innings.
“You’re trying to win (the weekday games) but you’re also trying to get people out there that don’t necessarily get time on the weekends,” he said. “It ... gives them more confidence for when they come out of the bullpen in the weekend when we need to get those bigger wins against better conference teams,” he said.
Wells and junior center fielder Ethan Newton both had two hits and two runs in the outing, while senior designated hitter Doug Holmes went 2-for-2 with a run.
Ohio senior right fielder Jensen Painter also doubled and walked to reach base safely for the 36th straight game.
jr992810@ohiou.edu
