LEWIS CENTER, Ohio – The Otterbein Cardinals battled to their first victory of the season in game one on a walk-off squeeze bunt placed beautifully by sophomore JT Gels. The Cardinals won 4-3 in the doubleheader opener before falling in game two, 12-10.
 
GAME ONE: Otterbein 4, Hope 3

Jack Barber and Gels paced the Otterbein offense with two hits each, while Gels also scored a run and delivered the game-winning RBI. Calvin Mabry,Nolan James, Cam Fisher, Caleb Bond and Dylan Andrews added one hit apiece, with Bond also driving in a run.

Otterbein struck first in the bottom of the second inning. Gels reached on a bunt single and advanced to third over the next two at-bats. Daniel Uhl drew a walk to secure a second baserunner for the Cardinals, and a wild pitch allowed Gels to score while moving Uhl to second. Bond followed with a single down the right-field line to plate Uhl and extend the lead to 2–0.

Hope finally found the scoring column in the top of the fourth pushing in a run to trim the deficit to 2–1, but Otterbein responded in the fifth, pushing across another run to regain a two-run cushion at 3–1.

Hope rallied in the top of the seventh, scoring twice to even the game at 3–3. The Cardinal offense remained steady and loaded the bases as Gels came to the plate with just one run needed to secure the walk-off victory. The sophomore executed a suicide squeeze bunt to perfection, bringing home the winning run and sealing the walk-off victory.
Nick Mealey delivered a strong start, pitching five innings while allowing just one earned run and striking out five. Russ Wight worked the final two innings in relief, fanning two and earning the win on the mound for Otterbein.
 
GAME TWO: Hope 12, Otterbein 10

Mabry and Uhl powered the offense with three hits apiece in the second outing, while Andrews and Evan Chmielewski each chipped in with two hits of their own. Mabry finished just a home run shy of hitting a cycle, ripping the team's lone triple, and Uhl and Gels added doubles to round out Otterbein's extra-base production.

Otterbein harnessed the hype from their first win and channeled it into their first offensive frame, erupting for seven runs to answer Hope's early scoring threat. After loading the bases, the Cardinals drove in Barber and Mabry and Fisher broke things open with a blast over the right-center fence to make it 5-0. The surge continued as the Cardinals plated three more runners before Hope could seal off the offensive flood.
 
Despite Otterbein's early offensive assault, Hope responded with a few crooked numbers in the fourth (2), sixth (2) and seventh (6) innings to take a 12-9 lead heading into the bottom of the seventh. Otterbein scratched across one more run but couldn't reclaim the lead over the final two frames.
 
Darren Ramsey got the start in game two, working five innings before Brady Heagen, Derek Richardson and Andrew Nemec handled the final three. Richardson was tagged with the loss, surrendering four hits and five earned runs. Ramsey, Heagen and Nemec all waved two batters apiece in the outing.

Up Next, the Cardinals hit the Myrtle Beach turf for the Ripken Experience Spring Training trip. First pitch is set for March 7, 10 a.m. against Houghton.