Ohio State Advances With 4-2 Win Over Michigan – Ohio State Buckeyes
5/22/2003 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 22, 2003
Box Score
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – Christian Snavely (Jr., Defiance, Ohio/Defiance) hit his fourth home run in as many games – a two-run shot in the sixth -which was the difference in Ohio State’s 4-2 victory over Michigan in the Buckeyes’ opening game of the Big Ten Tournament at Siebert Field.
Snavely gave the Buckeyes a 4-0 lead in the sixth inning with a home run to right-center field. His 13th home run of the season also scored Mike Rabin (So., West Chester, Ohio/Lakota East), who singled to center with one out. Snavely’s blast was his fourth in as many games, all at Siebert Field, and extended his career-long hit streak to 16 games.
The Buckeyes had five hits in the game, one less than the Wolverines. Snavely finished the game 1-for-3 with the two RBI. Derek Kinnear (Jr., Kenton, Ohio/Kenton) also was responsible for the first two RBI of the night with his double in the fifth inning.
Michigan starting pitcher Phil Tognetti kept the first 12 Buckeye batters off the base paths, sitting batters down in order in the first, second, third and fourth innings. That changed in the fifth inning when Steve Caravati (So., Dover, Ohio/Dover) led off the inning with a single deep in the hole at short. After a ground out by Paul Farinacci (So., Westlake Village, Calif./Agoura) that moved Caravati to second, Cody Caughenbaugh (Fr., Newark, Ohio/Licking Valley) singled to center field to put runners at first and third. Kinnear singled to the right-field corner and scored both Caravati and Caughenbaugh to give the Buckeyes a 2-0 lead. Ohio State starter Josh Newman (Jr., Wheelersburg, Ohio/Wheelersburg) picked up the win to improve to 6-5 on the year. He allowed the two Wolverine runs (both earned) on six hits with one walk and four strikeouts.
A lead-off home run in the eighth by Matt Butler pulled Michigan within three runs. It was the first home run of his career. Gino Lollio followed with a double to right and then Newman walked Nick Rudden. He then plunked Brock Koman to load the bases without an out. The prompted a pitching change. Skipper Bob Todd brought in Matt Davis (So., Mason, Ohio/William Mason).
Davis coaxed Jake Fox to ground into a double-play. Davis made a stab at the ball, but it tipped off his glove and was fielded by second baseman Drew Anderson (So., Brownsburg, Ind./Brownsburg), who flipped the ball with his glove to shortstop Brett Garrard (Jr., Brownsburg, Ind./Brownsburg), who fired it to Farinacci at first for the 1-4-6-3 twin killing. Lollio scored on the double play. Davis then got Mike Sokol to ground out to end the inning.
The Buckeyes went in order in the bottom of the inning and then Davis came back to get Jordan Cantalamessa to pop up to first base. Davis then struck out pinch hitters A.J. Scheidt and Brandon Roberts to end the game and pick up his 11th save of the season, which gave him the highest season total in Buckeye history all to himself. He had entered the game in a first place tie with Cory Cox.
Tognetti got the complete-game loss for Michigan to fall to 6-5 on the season. He allowed the four runs on five hits without a walk. He had a single strikeout in the second inning.
Ohio State now must wait to find out when and who it will be playing next. Constant rain throughout the day Thursday pushed back the first game four hours and only two games were able to be played. The third game to be played Thursday, pitting Minnesota and Penn State, was postponed until Friday at 1:05 p.m. (EDT). Ohio State will not play Friday so that the bracket can be played in order. The Buckeyes next will play Saturday at either 1:05 or 4:35 p.m.
