No. 20 UNOH Cruises in Crosstown Showdown

LIMA, Ohio – Taking advantage of the forecast, the NAIA No. 20 University of Northwestern Ohio baseball team scheduled a crosstown matchup against the Ohio State University Lima Barons on Tuesday afternoon.

The two teams duked it out in the early parts of the contest, but a nine-run fourth inning by the Racers (20-10) extended a 3-2 lead over the Barons to double figures, and the Racers did not look back, taking the contest in seven innings with a massive 24-2 decision.

The fourth inning opened with OSU-Lima having its most productive inning with two runs off of three hits and one Racer error, but the Racers proved they were more than ready to respond. The inning's scoring got off to a powerful start as Carlos Baerga, Jr. ripped a triple down the left field line which scored Erich Gonzalez and Miz Fuentes. A Felix Correa sacrifice fly drove Baerga across the plate and emptied the base paths.

However, Kyle Fisher made sure that was not the case for long as he singled through the middle prior to advancing to third on a failed pickoff attempt by OSU-Lima's Justin Keeling. A RBI single by Jose Paulino followed by a Jeff Cardenas walk led to a call to the bullpen for the Barons.

The change did not seem to phase UNOH too much as the Racers scored five more runs before the Barons ended the inning.

A quiet fifth inning in comparison saw the lead extend by one run off of an Omar Frias pinch-hit, RBI double to center field, but that was essentially the eye of the hurricane for the Racers' offense as UNOH put up 11 more runs in the bottom of the sixth inning.

The sixth inning also saw senior pitcher Abrahan Flete step up to the plate as a pinch-hitter. He delivered in his first career plate appearance with a RBI single to right field.

The Racers out-hit OSU-Lima 19-5 and tallied six extra-base hits which included two triples. UNOH also showed speed on the base paths with three stolen bases.

Five pitchers saw the hill for UNOH with Brett McEldowney (1-0) earning the win after throwing 3.0 innings in the start. He allowed just one hit and two walks. Jacob Hulcher, Muerenty Lourens, Ryan Mahaffey, and Ryan Mose all threw an inning each.

UNOH's next series is scheduled for a weekend Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference matchup against Rochester College. The two teams will first meet with a doubleheader on Saturday, March 25 starting at 1 PM.

Tickets for the April 19 game versus Madonna University at Comerica Park will be for sale in between games. More information can be found on www.UNOHRacers.com.