WESTERVILLE, Ohio – In one of the most fitting weekly honors across the Ohio Athletic Conference this season, Otterbein senior Logan Weber has been voted the newest/last OAC Pitcher of the Week for the 2022 regular season.

Weber (Harrison/Harrison) played a role in both victories Sunday afternoon at No. 1-ranked Marietta, where the Cardinals turned some heads on the national landscape after topping the Pioneers by counts of 7-3 and 11-8.

However… the outings were even more significant to Weber, who lost his mom (Ingrid) to cancer on his 16th birthday back in 2016. Pitching on Mother's Day, the senior right-hander was able to fight through emotions and perform admirably for his club.

"This game was more than just a game for me," Weber said. "As tough as it already is facing the No. 1 team in the country, it always becomes tougher for me on Mother's Day. Emotions were all over the place… which made the idea of pitching even harder to digest…"

Weber entered in the fifth inning of game one with his team ahead… although things didn't quite start the way he envisioned. A walk, hit batter and dropped fly ball allowed Marietta to bring across an unearned run. Weber regrouped nicely to retire the next three hitters, inducing a pair of flyouts before a fielder's choice grounder sent him back to the dugout.

The veteran was then asked to try and keep Marietta at ease late in game two, assuming the mound in the eighth inning with the host Pioneers leading 8-6. Weber delivered a quick 1-2-3 frame to bring his offense back up… for what would be a stunning ninth inning.

After the Cardinals scored five runs (all with two out), Weber suddenly retook the mound with an 11-8 cushion and looking to finish a victory. He did just that… starting by making an acrobatic stab on a rope up the middle from the leadoff hitter. He tossed to first, struck out the next batter, secured a game-ending grounder, rejoiced with his teammates, and then left the diamond to hug his father (Chris) in an emotional embrace.

"Every time I take the mound, I write my mother's initials in the dirt behind the rubber," Weber added. "I look up into the sky and ask for her strength and guidance. Yesterday was different, though. It felt like she was there with me. I truly can't describe the feeling."

Weber didn't allow a hit over three full innings on the day, helping Otterbein lock up the No. 2 seed in this week's OAC Tournament… right back at Marietta.

A program journeyman who entered as a dual option at third base, Weber has stayed the course over up-and-down stretches on the mound. He now currently holds a 6-2 pitching record this spring and leads the team in wins.

Weber soon plans to follow in the footsteps of both parents (former police officers) and pursue a career in law enforcement.

Prior to that, however, Otterbein closes out the regular season Monday evening at Denison before squaring off with No. 3 seed Baldwin Wallace come Thursday afternoon to launch the postseason.