For the first month and a half of the season, Ohio’s offense rarely posed a threat to opposing pitchers. Its batting average hovered at or below .200 and baserunners were lucky to find themselves in scoring position.
In the span of week, that has appeared to change.
Ohio’s offense exploded for the third-straight game in a 12-3 win over Morehead State on Tuesday night at Bob Wren Stadium. This surge of scoring has powered Ohio (8-18, 3-3 Mid-American Conference) to its first three game win streak of the season.
While it may not seem like much, it’s a big step forward for a team that lost eight of its first nine games, including seven in a row.
“We’re doing a better job with our approach and executing out plan,” coach Rob Smith said.
It took Ohio 14 games to score its first 36 runs of the season. The Bobcats have now scored 36 runs in the last three games.
Ohio’s been scoring runs by attacking pitchers early.
With the bases loaded and two outs on Tuesday, Morehead State pitcher Alex Garbick needed one good pitch to escape the second inning and hold Ohio to a run. That was the plan until Trevor Lukkes hit a shot into right-center field that was misplayed by Connor Pauly, who slipped and overran the ball. Right fielder Ryan Lane kicked the ball, which allowed Ohio to clear the bases.
Those three runs were all the Bobcats needed to boost their offense to another big night.
Morehead State struggled to score against Ohio starter Joe Rock, who pitched five innings for the Bobcats. The Eagles had five hits, one walk and an unearned run against Rock.
“To have [Rock] available to go five innings was a big difference maker.” Smith said, “He was really sharp early, threw a lot of strikes, and was very very effective.”
The run came after a potential double-play ball slipped under the glove of Ohio second baseman Trevor Hafner and rolled into the outfield, which put a runner on third base. Pauly hit an infield single to score the runner for Morehead State.
But it didn’t matter.
Ohio’s offense was on a roll and Morehead State couldn’t stop it.
Three errors for the Eagles didn’t help, either.
Taking advantage of mistakes has been something Ohio has done well in the win streak and Tuesday was no exception.
“It’s not about getting the free bases its about what you do with them,” Smith said.
The Bobcats were more than effective with those free bases. They scored four unearned runs, three of which came in the seventh inning.
In the last three games, Ohio has scored six unearned runs and three have been brought home on wild pitches.
Ohio looks to continue this streak this weekend at Northern Illinois. The Huskies have lost their last four games and will be looking to turn around their recent misfortune against the Bobcats.
Ohio should win, though, if the hitting stays consistent. Northern Illinois has allowed no less than five runs in its losing streak and ranks seventh in the MAC with a 6.12 ERA.
