Wednesday, May 24
Avon, Ohio (Sprenger Stadium)
8:30 pm
Ball State University
30-27
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Ohio
28-26
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Ohio
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Ball State
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Photo by: Mike Janes Photography
Ohio Edges Ball State to Open MAC Tournament, 4-3
May 24, 2017 | Baseball
AVON, Ohio – Ohio's Spencer Ibarra came through with a two-out RBI single in the top of the ninth inning to lift the Bobcats to a 4-3 win over the Ball State baseball team Wednesday evening on the first day of the 2017 Mid-American Conference Tournament.
Ball State (30-27) entered the tournament as the No. 4 seed, while Ohio (28-26) was slotted No. 5.
Ibarra, a first team All-MAC selection, tallied five of Ohio's seven hits in the victory. After back-to-back walks earlier in the ninth, Ibarra shot a 0-1 pitch into the gap in left center field to score pinch runner Jack Longo from second base.
Ball State (30-27) nearly mounted a two-out rally in the bottom of the ninth to force extra innings. With two outs and nobody on base, senior Sean Kennedy was hit by a pitch and awarded first base. Two wild pitches later, Kennedy was suddenly standing on third with junior Jeff Riedel at the plate. Riedel laced a 3-1 pitch over the first base bag, but Ohio's Rudy Rott made a diving stop. Rott then tossed on to pitcher Jake Roehn, who barely beat Riedel to the bag.
The Cardinals took an early 1-0 lead three pitches into the bottom of the first inning. Senior Alex Maloney crushed his eighth home run of the season over the left field fence. The lead lasted until the fifth when Ohio's Michael Klein brought in a run with a bases loaded walk.
Ibarra gave Ohio its first lead with another two-out RBI single, this time in the sixth inning.
Both teams had plenty of chances to break open the game in the final five frames. Ohio left the bases loaded in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings. The Cardinals stranded eight runners the last four innings.
Ball State evened the score in the seventh thanks to senior Matt Eppers' bases loaded walk. The two teams traded single runs in the eighth. Ohio briefly went ahead on a wild pitch. In the bottom of the inning, sophomore Roman Baisa beat out an infield single with two outs to plate Riedel.
Roehn, the only first team All-MAC pick as a relief pitcher, tossed the final two innings to earn the win. Ball State's Evan Marquardt took the loss as he allowed two runs in 2.1 innings.
Kennedy was the lone Cardinal to finish with multiple hits. The second baseman doubled twice, but did not score.
Ohio improves to 7-1 all-time against Ball State in MAC Tournament action. The Bobcats swept a three-game series from the Cardinals earlier this season as well.
The Cardinals fall to the elimination portion of the bracket and will face No. 8 seed Toledo tomorrow, May 25, at 1 p.m. Ohio advances to face No. 1 seed Kent State tomorrow at 8 p.m.
For the most up-to-date information on the Ball State baseball team, including schedule updates for this weekend's series, please follow @BallStateSports, @BallStateBB and @CoachMaloney.
Ball State (30-27) entered the tournament as the No. 4 seed, while Ohio (28-26) was slotted No. 5.
Ibarra, a first team All-MAC selection, tallied five of Ohio's seven hits in the victory. After back-to-back walks earlier in the ninth, Ibarra shot a 0-1 pitch into the gap in left center field to score pinch runner Jack Longo from second base.
Ball State (30-27) nearly mounted a two-out rally in the bottom of the ninth to force extra innings. With two outs and nobody on base, senior Sean Kennedy was hit by a pitch and awarded first base. Two wild pitches later, Kennedy was suddenly standing on third with junior Jeff Riedel at the plate. Riedel laced a 3-1 pitch over the first base bag, but Ohio's Rudy Rott made a diving stop. Rott then tossed on to pitcher Jake Roehn, who barely beat Riedel to the bag.
The Cardinals took an early 1-0 lead three pitches into the bottom of the first inning. Senior Alex Maloney crushed his eighth home run of the season over the left field fence. The lead lasted until the fifth when Ohio's Michael Klein brought in a run with a bases loaded walk.
Ibarra gave Ohio its first lead with another two-out RBI single, this time in the sixth inning.
Both teams had plenty of chances to break open the game in the final five frames. Ohio left the bases loaded in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings. The Cardinals stranded eight runners the last four innings.
Ball State evened the score in the seventh thanks to senior Matt Eppers' bases loaded walk. The two teams traded single runs in the eighth. Ohio briefly went ahead on a wild pitch. In the bottom of the inning, sophomore Roman Baisa beat out an infield single with two outs to plate Riedel.
Roehn, the only first team All-MAC pick as a relief pitcher, tossed the final two innings to earn the win. Ball State's Evan Marquardt took the loss as he allowed two runs in 2.1 innings.
Kennedy was the lone Cardinal to finish with multiple hits. The second baseman doubled twice, but did not score.
Ohio improves to 7-1 all-time against Ball State in MAC Tournament action. The Bobcats swept a three-game series from the Cardinals earlier this season as well.
The Cardinals fall to the elimination portion of the bracket and will face No. 8 seed Toledo tomorrow, May 25, at 1 p.m. Ohio advances to face No. 1 seed Kent State tomorrow at 8 p.m.
For the most up-to-date information on the Ball State baseball team, including schedule updates for this weekend's series, please follow @BallStateSports, @BallStateBB and @CoachMaloney.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: ROEHN, Jake (4-4)
L: Marquardt, Evan (3-5)
Batting:
2B: MROSLA, Anthony 1
RBI: IBARRA, Spencer 2 ; KLEIN, Michael 1
SH: BLACK, Ty 2
Base Running:
RUNS: IBARRA, Spencer 1 ; MROSLA, Anthony 2 ; LONGO, Jack 1
SB: FINKLER, Tyler 1
HBP: ROTT, Rudy 1 ; FINKLER, Tyler 1
Batting:
2B: Stayton, Caleb 1 ; Kennedy, Sean 2 ; Hulecki, Griffin 1
HR: Maloney, Alex 1
RBI: Maloney, Alex 1 ; Eppers, Matt 1 ; Baisa, Roman 1
SH: Hulecki, Griffin 1 ; Brockhouse, Colin 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Maloney, Alex 1 ; Riedel, Jeff 1 ; Hulecki, Griffin 1
SB: Baisa, Roman 1
HBP: Kennedy, Sean 1 ; Riedel, Jeff 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
4
R
0
H
2
RBI
0
AB
4
R
1
H
1
RBI
1
AB
5
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
OF
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RHP
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OF
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