Ohio lost 7-6 to Northern Kentucky in extra innings.
Fighting off a 5-0 deficit proved to be no problem for Ohio on a windy Wednesday night.
Fighting off the lights of Bob Wren Stadium, however, proved to be another story.
A pair of defensive blunders late in the game doomed Ohio in its midweek contest with Northern Kentucky, as the Bobcats fell 7-6 in 10 innings.
Jake Roehn (1-1) took the loss out of the bullpen, tossing two innings and allowing just one run.
"I'm very disappointed in how the game turned out," coach Rob Smith said. "All in all, (the bullpen) showed well, I just wish we hadn't broken down in the eighth."
The Bobcats got off to a sluggish start to the evening, as starting pitcher Gerry Salisbury struggled with his command and surrendered three runs in the first inning. In the second, he allowed two more to score and was pulled from the game after recording just four outs.
Fortunately for Ohio, the bullpen had a sparkling evening. Logan Jacik was called on to escape the jam in the second, and stranded both runners. He then made it through the third inning unscathed before Tom Colletti entered the game and fired a pair of scoreless frames of his own.
Ohio used the bottom of the second inning to begin piecing together its comeback. Third baseman John Adryan continued his hot streak he's ridden since the start of the season, smashing his fifth home run of the year to get Ohio on the board. With an RBI single in the third, the deficit was shrunk to three.
The Bobcats' real breakthrough, however, came in the sixth. With one out, Ohio strung together three consecutive hits, the last of which was a 2-run bomb to right by catcher Cody Gaertner. Two hits later, shortstop Tyler Finkler singled home a run to give Ohio its first lead of the contest.
As the comeback pressed on, so did the success of the bullpen. Cory Blessing and Mitchell Klein each pitched scoreless innings in the sixth and seventh, but that's when their luck ran out.
With a runner at second, Mason Fitzpatrick gave up a 2-out grounder to Northern Kentucky's Tito Montgomery that Finkler was able to center up, but failed to secure in his glove. The next batter singled, tying the game at six.
Defensive issues plagued Ohio again after the game entered its 10th frame. With a runner at first, The Norse's Conor Ledger hit a pop-up between the Bobcats' center fielder and right fielder. Both appeared to lose the ball in the lights, and the ball fell next to both, allowing what became the winning run to score.
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Charlie Jerger got the win for Northern Kentucky, tossing three scoreless frames out of the bullpen and giving up just one hit.
Adryan led the Ohio bats with a 3-for-4 evening that included a home run, triple and double with two RBI's and two runs scored. First baseman Rudy Rott and center fielder Spencer Ibarra each recorded two hits, with Rott producing an RBI as well.
Adryan's night raises his slugging percentage for the season to a monstrous .703.
"I'm seeing the ball pretty well lately," Adryan said. "They were throwing me off-speed after the first one went out, and I think the wind might have helped me a little tonight too."
@_TonyWolfe_
