Racers Sweep Home Opener Against St. Francis

LIMA, OH - UNOH baseball debuted their new home turf with a pair of victories Tuesday afternoon topping St. Francis (IL) 7-3 in game one and finishing off the sweep with an 11-8 win in game two.

Things got off to a shaky start with two walks, a hit batter and a three-bag error that cost the first run of the game in the top of the first, but it was the only time the Racers trailed all day. A single and double put runners in scoring position for UNOH in their first at bat and Tyler Huff brought in the equalizer with a RBI ground out to short. A lead off double from Tyler Filinger in the second was followed by a Nolan Hull single and the Racers took the lead for good, 2-1, after two.

A four-hit third added a pair of runs in the third and the second crooked number of the day came in the fifth behind a sacrifice bunt that was aided by an error and a sacrifice fly putting UNOH up 7-1 heading into the sixth. Three consecutive singles in the St. Francis half gave them two runs back but the Racers shut things down quickly to finish off the win.

Tyler Filinger was perfect in game one going 3-3 with a double and was joined by Zach Grigalis who also recorded three hits with two doubles. Casey Barnes ended with two RBI to lead the team with Tyler Huff, Eric Brown and Nolan Hull each bringing in one.

Noah Curi (1-0) picked up his first career win with UNOH allowing one unearned run on two hits with two walks over four and a third innings. Carter Hicks didn't give up a hit in his inning on the mound but his one walk ended up scoring in the sixth after Parker Kerr took over. Kerr finished the final inning and two-thirds giving up four hits with one run credited to his line and the Racers' only strike out of the game.

UNOH jumped out to a 9-2 lead through four innings in the second game of the day but had to hold off a furious comeback from the Saints who scored six in the final three. The first two came with a single-double-single combination in the home first that was capped by a sacrifice fly. After a scoreless second, St. Francis tied the game with a two-RBI double in the top of the third but Zach Grigalis answered with one swing of the bat ripping his second home run of the season to put UNOH back up 4-2. A couple singles, an error and a double steal made it a five-run inning and a five-run lead for the Racers after three.

After UNOH added two more in the fourth, the Saints began to chip away at the lead scoring two in the fifth and three in the sixth making it a 9-7 contest with an inning and a half to play. The comeback was denied with a pair of insurance runs in the home sixth thanks to Eric Brown and Casey Barnes putting the game out of reach despite a lone St. Francis run that ended the day.

Zach Grigalis concluded his stellar home debut with his second three-hit performance of the day and his third in the last four games. Junior transfer Casey Barnes ended with three hits of his own for the first time this season with both Barnes and Grigalis driving in three runs in game two. Eliomar Otero went 2-3 with a double and three runs scored while Eric Brown finished 2-4 with two RBI and two runs scored. 

Blake O'Bryan made his third start of the year but didn't last long enough to earn the decision giving up two runs on five hits with one walk. Josh Mauney (1-0) took over in the third and worked two hitless innings to pick up his first win of the year. Aidan Nugent made it through the fifth and Ryan Yingst faced just one batter in the sixth as the two combined in middle relief for five runs on three hits and each walking one. Elida product Jordan Davis earned his second save of the season finishing the final two frames with one run allowed on three hits with three strike outs and one walk.

UNOH will now gear up for the opening weekend of WHAC play with doubleheaders on both Friday and Saturday. The Racers will host Cornerstone first on March 13 followed by a trip to Lawrence Tech March 14.