Baseball Handles Drexel For Second Time In Tournament – Ohio State Buckeyes
3/25/1999 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 25, 1999
HOMESTEAD, Fla. – The Ohio State baseball team moved to 10-6 on the season with a 10-4 defeat of Drexel (4-11) Thursday morning at the Homestead Challenge.
%^$After two and one half scoreless innings, the Buckeyes finally took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third. Drexel starte Mark Horgan walked the first two batters of the inning and Jason Trott (Sr., Dublin, Ohio) loaded the bases with a pop fly single to left field. Jason Turner (Jr., Versailles, Ohio) sacrificed home Mike Lockwood (Jr., Powell, Ohio) for the early lead.
%^$Drexel took the lead in the top of the fifth with a two-run single by Jose Jimenez. Ryan Lucas led off the inning with a single that squeezed through the gap between first and second. Gregg Mellott then doubled over the first base bag and into right field. Jimenez took a 3-2 Greg Larrick (Fr., North Canton, Ohio) offering into centerfield scoring two runs for the lead. Larrick gave way to Kevin Goodrum (So., Mentor, Ohio) who recorded the final out of the inning.
%^$Horgan, who had walked the leadoff batter in each previous inning, walked Trott, hit Turner and then Jason Driscoll (Jr., Middlefield, Ohio) reached safely on a fielders choice sacrifice bunt that loaded the bases. Matt Middleton (Sr., Conover, Ohio) then smoked a triple into the power alley in left centerfield, clearing the bases for a 4-2 lead. Middleton then came home on the next pitch, a passed ball by Matt Neiber. Ryan Higgins entered in relief of Horgan and let in two more runs as Trent McIlvain (So., Louisville, Ohio) walked, stole second and scored on Lockwoods single to right. Lockwood then stole second base and crossed the plate on John Mayors (So., Chesterfield, Mo.) single into right field.
%^$Driscoll led off the Buckeye sixth with a triple to right centerfield. Middleton then muscled a double to left field that looked like it would be caught, but the ball tailed away from Mike Francis. Driscoll came home on the play increasing OSUs lead to six runs.
%^$For Drexel in the seventh, Lucas doubled off reliever Cory Cox (So., Chillicothe, Ohio), advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored when Francis singled to centerfield. Cox hit Neiber and Jason West singled to left field, scoring Francis, making the score 8-4 in favor of Ohio State.
%^$The Buckeyes tallied two unearned runs in the bottom of the seventh for a 10-4 lead. Lockwood doubled to right centerfield and Trott was walked by Mellott who came to the mound from second base to pitch. Lockwood came home when Mellott overthrew the ball to first on an attempted pickoff. Trott advanced to third and scored when the throw back from first to third went into the seats.
%^$Ohio State will play Dartmouth Friday at 3:30 p.m.
