PHOTO GALLERY

WESTERVILLE, Ohio – As wild as it sounds, the Otterbein Baseball program hosted its first game(s) at Fishbaugh Field in nearly 23 months Sunday afternoon following all of the pandemic adversity.

And, as similar as it sounds from Saturday, the Cardinals rebounded to salvage a split with Mount Union after losing a frustrating opener in doubleheader action.

GAME 1: (7-4 Loss)
Otterbein trailed 4-0 approaching the midway point of the opener, as a costly throwing error sandwiched between a pair of RBI knocks from the Raiders allowed the visitors an early lead.

The Cardinals found a groove in the middle innings, beginning in the fifth where four-straight Cardinals reached base. Otterbein plated three in that frame, and then a solo blast from Zach Franz tied things at 4-4.

That score remained intact until the top of the eighth, when a potential double-play ball up the middle was not corralled and eventually led to Mount crossing a pair. Otterbein only put one runner on base, via walk, over its final six outs.

NOTE: Due to technical difficulties and weather conditions, the live video stream ended near the end of the opening game and was unfortunately not available for the rematch. We hope to have this corrected by our next home game.

GAME 2: (11-1 Win)
The second game would be all Cardinals, as the hosts erupted for five runs in the second frame and never looked back. A mini 25-minute weather delay temporarily halted the momentum, but Otterbein picked right back up with two more runs in the third.

That 7-1 lead was ballooned even further in the fifth after consecutive RBI pokes from Dmitri Collaros, Luke Barber and Jamie Perebzak, followed by Ryan Mitchell scoring on a wild pitch. The game was called midway through the seventh inning due to Otterbein holding a double-digit lead.

Senior Ethan Doty was sharp on the mound despite the odd script, sitting for nearly 50 minutes of real time through the weather delay but remaining on point. He ultimately tossed six innings, allowing just one hit and striking out eight batters. Braydon McCloskey came in to finish off the seventh.

Barber went 3 for 4 at the dish while Perebzak, Collaros, Brayden Carter and Gino Pierro all enjoyed multi-hit outings. The Cardinals held a 14-4 hit advantage and did not commit an error defensively.

UP NEXT:
Otterbein, now 5-3 overall and 2-2 within the OAC standings, will travel to Baldwin Wallace on Good Friday before hosting the Yellow Jackets in another doubleheader next Saturday afternoon.