Ohio coach Craig Moore didn’t have to look far for the reason why his team lost yet another close game: they simply didn’t execute. In the final moments of a 12-inning, 10-9 loss to Dayton, a slew of errors and miscues led to Ohio’s 14th loss.
Dayton was able to scratch across the go-ahead run in the 12th inning via a botched pickoff attempt by freshman pitcher Julian Robertson that would score the runner from third to give the Flyers the lead.
The runner who scored, sophomore outfielder Michael DiMartini, reached earlier in the inning on a hard-hit ball to third baseman Nick Dolan, who couldn’t make the challenging play. In a game which featured four errors by the Bobcat defense, the 12th wasn’t the sole problem in the loss.
“We didn't execute well enough to win that game, both defensively and offensively," Moore said. “We had plenty of opportunities there in both phases of the game to either get out of something and not give up any runs defensively or to add on runs offensively. That was the difference in the game.”
The Ohio offense did enough to potentially get the win against Dayton but left some costly runners on base that could have won them the game. The Bobcats left eight runners on base, including two in scoring position in the 10th and 11th.
Although overall miscues defined the loss, Ohio left the game with its fair share of plays to be proud of. Moore was particularly proud of a handful of his young pitchers who turned in successful outings on the mound.
To start the game, freshman Hunter Winston had his best outing of the season. Entering the day with an ERA that hovered just under 20, Winston left with three innings pitched and only 1 run allowed.
“We had a lot of young arms pitch tonight, that was kind of the plan going into the game,” Moore said. “We wanted to do our best to get those guys in, to kind of give them some opportunities for experience.”
Other pitchers who played well were freshmen Julian Robertson and Luke Bryant, sophomore Ethan Stewart and junior Adam Beery. While Robertson was credited with the loss, he allowed no earned runs over two-and-one-thirds innings pitched to keep Ohio in the game till the very end.
The Bobcat offense was highlighted by multi-hit games from freshman infielder Matt Ineich, as well as a pair of sophomores in outfielder Ben Slanker and shortstop JR Nelson. Slanker and Nelson each tallied home runs in the game, while Ineich was productive out of the leadoff spot with two RBIs.
Ohio had a chance to win the game in the top of the ninth after scoring 4 runs in the eighth inning to jump out to a 2-run lead. Sophomore Trey Barkman took the mound for the Bobcats and surrendered a game-tying 2-run home run to Dayton’s Rylan Lujo.
Lujo was the difference for Dayton, posting an absurd stat line including two home runs and five total hits.
The Bobcats relief pitchers have continued to be a focal point of every loss as the team desperately tries to find an arm that can pitch in big situations. Without a quality bullpen, Ohio will find itself in many more games like this one.
Next on the schedule for Ohio will be its first road MAC series of the year when it heads north to Toledo for a three-game series with the Rockets this weekend.
