Ohio State junior left-handed pitcher Seth Lonsway (11) pitches during the Ohio State-Indiana game on April 3. Ohio State won 6-0. Credit: Mackenzie Shanklin | Photo Editor
As the Ohio State pitching staff struggled with control, the Buckeyes were unable to secure a single win on the weekend against the Maryland Terrapins.
Ohio State (13-12) was swept by Maryland (13-12), extending its losing streak to five games, killing the momentum it built on its five-game winning streak following Game 1 in its series against Michigan April 9. The Buckeyes equaled or out-hit the Terrapins in all three games of the series.
Game 1:
Similar to the eighth inning of the series finale against Michigan, the Buckeyes fell victim to a big inning.
Ohio State dropped the series opener against Maryland 10-6, but the Terrapins did not hit great on the evening, despite putting together a seven-run sixth inning. Maryland only had five hits — the same total as the Buckeyes — but drew nine walks and were hit by pitches four times.
“Today was not very good. Maryland’s got a solid offensive team, so there’s some careful in the pitching, but not that much,” head coach Greg Beals said. “They scored 10 runs off five hits, so the free base number was the difference in the ballgame.”
The sixth inning started with a sharp line-drive single off the bat of freshman third baseman Matthew Shaw.
After junior right-handed pitcher Garrett Burhenn showed signs of fatigue, throwing a wild pitch and walking junior shortstop Benjamin Cowles, he was pulled for graduate left-handed reliever Patrick Murphy with two outs and runners on the corners.
Murphy spiked a pitch — the second wild pitch of the game — allowing Shaw to score from third.
From there, Murphy walked sophomore right fielder Tucker Flint and senior second baseman Tommy Gardiner. He then hit senior catcher Justin Vought.
“That’s the total outlier for Murph,” Beals said. “Feel bad for him because he’s a great competitor and totally prepared.”
With the score still a manageable 4-2, Maryland senior center fielder Chris Alleyne busted it wide open, clearing the bases with a three-RBI double.
Alleyne later came around to score on a passed ball, and Shaw capped off the inning with his second single to right field in the frame, this time plating senior left fielder Randy Bednar, who walked and stole second.
Ohio State got on the board first courtesy of redshirt senior Conner Pohl’s moonshot in the top of the second — his sixth of the season and first four-bagger since Game 1 of the doubleheader against Indiana April 3.
As quickly as the Buckeyes picked up the lead, they gave it right back to the Terrapins a half inning later afterFlint doubled home Cowles.
Junior shortstop Zach Dezenzo committed his seventh error of the season with two outs in the bottom of the third, allowing Alleyne to score from third.
Both of Maryland’s first two runs of the game reached base thanks to a hit-by-pitch and a walk, respectively. The Terrapins only had two runners score after hitting their way on — the other eight reached base on walks and hit-by-pitches.
The Buckeyes battled back, though, scoring three in the ninth courtesy of sophomore outfielder Mitchell Okuley hitting his sixth long ball of the year, but it was too little, too late.
“You got to play the moment, play one batter, one pitch at a time,” Beals said. “It sounds cliche-ish, but it’s exactly what needs to happen in order to compete successfully is to be able to separate from one to the next and be your best in each individual moment.”
Game 2:
The Achilles’ heel of the Buckeyes — walks, hit-by-pitches and wild pitches — hurt them again in their Game 2 extra-innings loss to Maryland.
The Buckeyes dropped Saturday’s contest 5-4, despite Maryland collecting only four hits — none of which came in its game-winning 10th inning — and going 0-for-11 with runners on base.
“The problem is that we had zero runs scored. Had we had three or four runs, then every little thing that happens in the game is not magnified so much,” Beals said. “When your offense is not producing, then it puts an extreme amount of pressure on the pitchers. That’s causing some of the problems on the mound.”
Junior right-handed closer T.J. Brock has been a mainstay in the back half of the Buckeyes’ bullpen, having the lowest ERA on the team out of anyone with at least 10 innings pitched.
Brock shut down the Terrapins’ bottom of the order in their game-winning chance in the ninth, and only needed nine pitches to do so.
Then, the 10th inning came and Brock struggled with command.
He walked the leadoff batter Alleyne on four pitches, hit Shaw, then Cowles dropped down a sacrifice bunt to put runners on second and third with one out.
Beals elected to intentionally walk junior first baseman Maxwell Costes, bringing freshman designated hitter Luke Shliger to the plate.
Shliger — who entered the day with the least number of walks of any Terrapin with at least 13 games played — drew his second walk of the day on a 3-2 pitch, after spoiling a couple tough pitches from Brock.
“I mean, three up, three down in the ninth, then he comes out and walks the leadoff guy,” Beals said. “We go walk, hit batsman, then we go sacrifice bunt and I think you have to walk Costes in that situation. Then we walked the next guy.”
The first two Maryland runs were unearned gifts.
In the bottom of the fifth, redshirt junior lefty Seth Lonsway threw over to first, attempting to pick off Alleyne who broke for second on Lonsway’s leg kick. However, Lonsway airmailed redshirt senior first baseman Conner Pohl, and Alleyne scored all the way from first.
Then, with two outs in the bottom of the sixth, Lonsway spiked a pitch that senior catcher Archer Brookman was unable to corral, allowing Costes to score from third.
The Buckeyes, however, were not given such opportunities to score, having to earn their four runs which all came in the seventh and ninth innings, respectively.
Two came on Pohl’s seventh home run of the year — his second in as many days.
“I just tried to relax in the box, not try and press or anything,” Pohl said. “Kind of refined my approach a little bit. Sticking kind of within myself and just trying to swing about 75 percent and just try and catch a barrel.”
Then with its backs against the wall, Ohio State picked up three straight singles to each position in the outfield as graduate utility Scottie Seymour walked and junior infielder Marcus Ernst grounded into a double play to tie the game at 4-4 before the Terrapins walked it off in the 10th.
Beals said despite another disappointing loss, he appreciates the fight his team showed.
“There’s no doubt we showed fight,” Beals said. “We need to attack the first inning like we did late in the game once we got down. We got our backs against the wall, we played pretty damn good today.”
Game 3:
The Buckeyes jumped out to what looked like a commanding lead with four runs in the top of the third, but Maryland responded by scoring nine unanswered runs.
Ohio State lost Sunday’s series finale to the Terrapins 9-4, getting swept for the first time in a series all year and losing its fifth straight. For the third game in a row, walks cost the Buckeyes, contributing to Maryland’s three innings that it scored in.
Ohio State jumped out to a commanding 4-0 lead in the top of the third — its first lead of at least three runs since April 9 against Michigan.
Much like what they’ve had to do all series, the Buckeyes had to earn their runs, stringing together four consecutive hits.
Senior designated hitter Sam Wilson singled, Okuley doubled, Dezenzo doubled and freshman outfielder Kade Kern singled — his first of two hits on the day.
Kern finished the series as one of Ohio State’s most consistent hitters, slashing a 5-for-13 clip with two runs scored and an RBI.
Junior right-hander Jack Neely led off the inning surrendering a solo homer to sophomore designated hitter Bobby Zmarzlak.
Neely responded by walking Alleyne, hitting Cowles — he was hit by three pitches in the series — and surrendering a game-tying moonshot to Costes.
The San Antonio native was lifted in the fourth after walking the leadoff hitter, going only three innings while allowing five earned runs on four hits and surrendering three walks.
Neely has yet to go further than five innings in a ballgame this season, and Ohio State has lost the last two games in which he has started. The Buckeyes were previously 5-0 in games Neely toed the rubber.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, the Terrapins picked up a pair of runs on Alleyne’s two-RBI double. The Philadelphia native finished the day 3-for-4 with two RBIs, a walk and two runs scored.
Maryland added to its total in the sixth, as Alleyne scored on a wild pitch and Cowles hit his 11th home run of the year — a two-run bomb to break his tie with Northwestern junior infielder Shawn Goosenberg for the lead in the Big Ten.
Ohio State looks to snap its five-game losing streak in Columbus next weekend in a three-game homestand against Penn State.
