WESTERVILLE — The Otterbein baseball team dropped a pair of tight games to Ohio Northern in an Ohio Athletic Conference doubleheader on Tuesday. The Polar Bears opened with a 3-1 win and completed the sweep with a 6-5 victory.

The Basics

• Records: Otterbein (12-12 overall, 2-4 OAC), Ohio Northern (16-6 overall, 4-0 OAC)
• Venue: Fishbaugh Field - Westerville, Ohio

Otterbein Stat Leaders - Game 1

• Senior Charlie Greenlief tallied two hits and one RBI.
• Senior Zac Taylor posted two hits and one run.
• Graduate student Jamie Perebzak had one hit.
• Graduate student Luke Perigo got the start on the mound for the Cardinals and allowed three runs (two earned) on six hits and one walk while recording four strikeouts.
• Junior Sam Sethna and senior Robby Kain combined to pitch five scoreless innings in relief. Kain recorded a pair of strikeouts over the final three frames.

Game 1 Highlights - Ohio Northern 3, Otterbein 1

• Ohio Northern opened the scoring with a run on an RBI single in the top of the first inning.
• The Polar Bears added two more runs in the top of the fourth to take a 3-0 lead.
• The Cardinals got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the eighth after a leadoff single from Taylor, who advanced to second when Perebzak was hit by a pitch. The ONU defense turned a double play, but Taylor advanced to third and later scored on an RBI single from Greenlief. With runners on first and second, senior Jake Brown lined out to end the game.
• Ohio Northern out-hit Otterbein by a 7-5 margin. Otterbein committed three errors to Ohio Northern's none.

Otterbein Stat Leaders - Game 2

• Sophomore Nolan James tallied two hits, including a triple, to go with two RBIs and one run.
• Taylor posted two hits and one run.
• Perebzak added one hit, one RBI and one run.
• Freshman Daniel Uhl and senior Tyler Biddle each had one hit and one run.

Game 2 Highlights - Ohio Northern 6, Otterbein 5

• Ohio Northern took a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning on an RBI double and 2-RBI double.
• Otterbein answered with a pair of runs in the bottom of the second, which was highlighted by an RBI single from Perebzak.
• The Polar Bears extended their lead to 4-2 in the top of the third on an RBI fielder's choice.
• Ohio Northern scored two more runs in the top of the seventh on a pair of RBI singles for a 6-2 edge.
• Trailing by four, the Cardinals made a comeback in the bottom of the ninth after a one-out single from Taylor. Perebzak was hit by a pitch, putting runners on first and second. With two outs, James hit a triple that scored Taylor and Perebzak and then came home courtesy of a Polar Bear error, making the score 6-5. But the Polar Bears induced a flyout off the bat of Greenlief to secure the win.
• Ohio Northern out-hit Otterbein by an 11-9 margin. Otterbein committed two errors to Ohio Northern's three.

Notables 

• Named the OAC Player of the Year and CSC Second Team Academic All-America in 2024, Perebzak ranks third all-time at Otterbein in hits (219), is tied for third in doubles (47), is tied for eighth in home runs (23) and ranks second in RBIs (185). Jim Allen (1986-89) is the program's all-time leader in RBIs with 189.
• Senior Logan Ullom has 108 hits, 26 doubles and 49 RBIs in his Otterbein career. He has a team-high 36 hits and 10 doubles this season.
• Taylor has a team-high 20 RBIs on the season.
• Head coach George Powell is in his 26th year at Otterbein and has an all-time record of 620-432-1 at the helm of the Cardinals. He is four wins away from tying Dick Fishbaugh (624) for most coaching wins in program history and fifth all-time in OAC history. Powell is a six-time OAC Coach of the Year honoree and has coached the Cardinals to three OAC regular-season championships and six OAC Tournament titles.
• Otterbein is 20-16 against Ohio Northern dating back to 2009.