Junior Tyler Pettorini (42) high-fives Ohio State head coach Bill Mosiello to score a run for the Buckeyes during their 14-13 win over Wright State at Bill Davis Stadium Tuesday. Credit: Lance Haupricht | Lantern Photographer
It took 390 pitches for the Buckeyes to leave Bill Davis Stadium with a 14-13 win on Tuesday.
Ohio State (18-15, 5-4 Big Ten) and Wright State (20-16, 10-5 Horizon League) combined for 31 hits and five errors in a game that featured little to no effective pitching.
Eight out of nine Buckeye batters in the starting lineup got a hit while six out of seven Ohio State pitchers gave up runs in a game that took over three and a half hours.
”Wasn’t the way you write it up, but we’ll take it,” head coach Bill Mosiello said. “We’re finally finding ways to win games no matter what.”
Closer and captain Justin Eckhardt shut the door in the ninth, earning his Big Ten-leading sixth save of the season. Eckhardt said the team remembered Wright State sweeping the Buckeyes in two games last year, so it was ready for a dogfight.
”Wright State’s a great program; they have been for the past decade probably,” Eckhardt said. “We knew it was gonna be a good game coming into it, but it’s just a great team win.”
In the top of the first, freshman Chase Herrell started on the mound for the Buckeyes and was hit hard by the Raider offense. Wright State first scored one on a fielder’s choice and then Raider shortstop Boston Smith hit a three-run home run that gave Wright State a 4-0 lead heading into the bottom half of the inning.
Ohio State flipped the game around in the bottom of the first as junior third baseman Tyler Pettorini hit his fifth home run of the season, which tied him for the team lead. Freshman Isaac Cadena kept the rally going with a two-RBI single, knotting the score at 4-4.
Junior Nick Giamarusti then doubled to center, which scored two more and put first baseman Ryan Miller up to bat. On a 2-1 count, he hit a screaming double that plated Giamarusti and gave the Buckeyes a 6-4 lead.
In the bottom of the second, the Buckeyes scored five more runs behind a bases-loaded walk by Giamarusti and three straight RBI singles from Miller, junior outfielder Trey Lipsey and sophomore shortstop Henry Kaczmar that gave Ohio State an 11-4 advantage.
In the top of the third, Raider right fielder Ben Vore hit a two-run blast over the centerfield fence to cut the lead to five. The Buckeyes got the runs right back in the bottom half of the inning behind an RBI groundout from Miller and another RBI single from Lipsey, putting Ohio State up 13-6.
The runs kept coming in the top of the fourth, after another Raider home run by senior first baseman Jay Luikart scored two, cutting the Buckeye lead to five. The Ohio State offense went silent for a good portion of the game, but Wright State’s hitters kept smacking the ball. In the top of the sixth, a two-RBI double and an RBI single from the Raiders pulled them within one.
In the top of the eighth, Luikart blasted his second home run of the game, which evened the score at 13-13 and gave the Raiders their seventh run in a row.
The Buckeyes finally broke their four-inning scoring drought in the bottom of the eighth when Kaczmar drew a walk to start the inning and raced his way all the way to third after a failed pickoff attempt. Up next was catcher Matthew Graveline, who shot a fly ball far enough to score Kaczmar and put the Buckeyes back in the lead, 14-13.
Eckhardt came out to the mound in the ninth after six previous Ohio State pitchers had given up at least one run. Wright State got the bases loaded, but a pop-up by the Raiders stranded the three runners and gave the Buckeyes a 14-13 victory.
While Eckhardt hadn’t pitched in over a week, Mosiello said he always has trust in him.
”He keeps his poise, he’s a captain for us, and no situations are too big for him,” Mosiello said.
Seven different Buckeyes had two or more hits, and Miller led the team with a career-high four RBIs. Graduate reliever Jacob Morin moved to 4-0 on the season, while giving up 2 runs in 1.2 innings pitched.
Kaczmar was perfect at the plate as he got on base in all six of his at-bats. When Ohio State is losing, Kaczmar said the team always recognizes how fast the game can change.
”It’s just the mindset of the game is always tied, the scoreboard doesn’t really matter,” Kaczmar said. “I always have trust in [Mosiello] and in the team that we’re going to get it done.”
Ohio State ran two separate promotions, including free Pit Viper sunglasses for the first 500 students and $1 hot dogs. This, as well as, the game itself, brought a record-breaking 1,924 students to Bill Davis Stadium, which is something that Kaczmar hopes will continue this season.
”If we keep winning, they’re gonna keep coming, so I’m looking forward to more fans,” Kaczmar said.
Ohio State’s scheduled midweek game against Kent State was postponed, which leads the Buckeyes straight into Ann Arbor, Michigan, for a three-game Big Ten rivalry series with Michigan Friday through Sunday. Big Ten Plus will broadcast, with the first game set to begin at 6 p.m. on Friday.
