Ohio will travel roughly 135 miles west for an in-state rivalry Tuesday. The Bobcats will play a midweek, nonconference game against Dayton.
The Bobcats are coming off a stunning series win over Kent State. After dropping the first game of the series, they had back-to-back comeback wins over the Golden Flashes, who are considered one of the best teams in the Mid-American Conference.
Where: Ohio will take on Dayton at Woerner Field on Dayton’s campus at 3 p.m.
Ohio (19-20) report: Coach Rob Smith likes to use midweek games as staff days, so it is possible the Bobcats will dive deep into their bullpen Tuesday. If that’s the case, redshirt freshman Cole Shinsky or redshirt senior Cory Blessing will likely start. Michael Klein is another option as a starter. He was a normal starter at the beginning of the season, but an elbow injury has kept him from pitching deep into starts.
Rudy Rott continues to carry the offensive load for the Bobcats; his batting average sits at .361. Rott leads the team in batting average, hits (57), doubles (13), home runs (8), runs (35) and RBIs (33). Tanner Piechnick has been solid at the plate for the Bobcats, too. He is second on the team with six home runs and is batting .328.
Dayton (10-25) report: The Flyers are fresh off their first conference series win of the season. They took two of three from St. Bonaventure. Junior infielder Pat Meehan leads the Dayton offense that doesn’t feature a batting average over .300. He’s hitting .291 in 141 at bats this season. The Flyers are batting .243 as a team. They’re also not great at getting on base. As a team, Dayton has a .323 on-base percentage, and it has drawn just 100 walks.
As a pitching staff, the Flyers have struggled. Unlike conference play when they have a three-man rotation, they have an abundance of pitchers who have started in nonconference play. Each has struggled. Dayton’s team ERA is 7.38, which is in the bottom 15 for all Division 1 baseball teams.
How to follow along: The game will be broadcast live on Spectrum Sports. You can also listen to WOUB 1340 for the radio call.
After the game: The Bobcats have just one midweek game this week. This weekend they will travel to Oxford for a three-game series with Miami.
