Season Ends as Racers Eliminated from Lima Bracket

LIMA, Ohio – Finding itself in foreign territory, the NAIA No. 7 University of Northwestern Ohio baseball team squared off against the No. 10 Middle Georgia State University Knights in an elimination contest on Wednesday morning.

Playing as the home team for the first time in the Opening Round, the top-seeded Racers (44-12) got off to an early 2-0 lead through the first inning thanks to a two-RBI single by Blake Maines. However, the Knights (46-15) powered to a 7-2 lead with strong performances in the fourth and fifth en route to a 13-6 final for MGA.

The Racers did get a pair back in the bottom of the fifth thanks to a two-run bomb by Junior Gomez, extending his single-season record to 11 home runs, chipped away at the deficit, but the Knights piled on six more runs in the seventh to extend the gap.

Throughout the year, UNOH had proven capable of scoring a heavy amount of runs in a short span, and a two-out rally nearly took off in the bottom of the eighth as Kyle Fisher drove in Carlos Baerga, Jr. with a RBI double to left but proved the only run of the inning.

Entering the bottom of the ninth, Jeff Cardenas powered his 10th home run in leadoff fashion as the senior shortstop attempted to rally the troops in the dugout. However, the next three batters were surrendered to seal the decision.

The 44 wins on the year are the second-most in program history as the Racers reached their highest ranking in the NAIA Coaches' Poll at the seven spot. The campaign was also highlighted by a record-breaking 27-game winning streak and a sweep of the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference championships.