My apologies to all you DIII and NAIA folks out there. Some unforeseen parental health issues caused me to get a little derailed the last few days. Luckily Mother Nature forced the cancellation of the double headers in Chillicothe last weekend so I didn’t miss out on any games in person.
So what happened in the DIII world? Well, like most years we’re easing into the season. Capital, Hiram and John Carroll headed to Florida for their spring trips. Mount St. Joseph found themselves in Georgia for a quick weekend tune up. Let’s take a look at how our Ohio schools faired as we gear up for next weekend when the flood gates really open up.
Capital (1-0): The Crusaders got off to a quick start beating John Jay (NY) 15-5 in their opener. It was the first career win for new head coach Ryan Grice. Capital got an excellent outing from senior Matt Uy. The southpaw allowed just one run over his 6 innings of work. Brian Rowan tossed a couple solid innings of relief and senior Marty Assmann made his first career appearance to close out the win.
The Crusaders had 10 different players score offensively led by James Oldfield’s three runs. Freshman Brandon Natale also scored twice and drove in three in his collegiate debut. Capital had just four hits, but John Jay aided the Crusaders’ offense with 12 walks and 7 hit batsmen. The Crusaders relievers plunked 4 of their own.
Hiram (1-1): Howard Jenter’s Hiram Terriers earned a split in their season opening DH with Hanover (IN). The Terriers took game 1 by a score of 7-6. Hanover bounced back and downed Hiram 11-0 in game 2.
Outfielder Lance Townsend coaxed a game-winning bases loaded walk in the bottom of the seventh to break a 6-6 tie. It was his second bases loaded walk of the game (he also added a solo homer for good measure). Kyle Kovach, Steve Dunn and Randy Miller also added multi-hit games. Mike Lalonde picked up the win in relief after throwing a scoreless frame in the top of the seventh.
The Terriers mustered just three base hits in the nightcap. Kovach, Cody Fincham and Travis Richey each found the green once, but Hiram just couldn’t get anything going off of Kyle Barnett.
John Carroll (1-0): John Jay (NY) continued their rude reception at the hands of the OAC as JCU hammered the Bloodhounds 23-0 in their opener. No other info is available at this time, but I think we all get the picture.
Mount St. Joe (1-2): The Lions dropped their opener at the hands of 5-1 Birmingham Southern by a tally of 7-2. The Mount got multi-hit performances from shortstop Josh Denny (2 for 4) and Craig Shanks (2 for 3). Matt Flamm hit the first long ball of the season, a solo shot.
Right fielder Ben Stroube was the standout in the game two loss to Huntingdon. The Lions fell 11-7 in their second game of the season. Stroube, however, was a bright spot going 2 for 3 with 3 runs scored and 2 RBI. The Lions defense committed five errors leading to half a dozen unearned runs. Stuart Simons was the tough luck loser in relief as he allowed 5 runs, none of them earned.
MSJ notched their first ‘W’ against Arcadia with a 10-5 result in their third and final game in Georgia. The Lions got a great effort from starting pitcher Brandon Bouley. Bouley went five shutout innings allowing a lone hit while striking out six. Offensively, MSJ was paced by leadoff man John Pasquele. The center fielder went 2 for 3 with a couple runs scored and a run batted in. Pasquele also swiped three bags.
Filed under: Division III
