Second OSU Comeback Against No. 19 FAU Not Enough in 7-6 Loss – Ohio State Buckeyes
3/24/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 24, 2004
Box Score
BOCA RATON, Fla. – Ohio State scored once in the top of the ninth and left two runners on base ending a second straight comeback bid against No. 19 Florida Atlantic Wednesday night at FAU Field. The Owls thwarted a comeback by the Buckeyes one night earlier in a 6-4 victory.
Trailing 7-5 entering the top of the ninth, Derek Kinnear (Sr., Kenton, Ohio/Kenton) led off the inning with a single up the middle for his third hit of the game. Drew Anderson (Jr., Brownsburg, Ind./Brownsburg) followed with a single to shallow left-center field to put runners at first and second. Anderson was out at second on a fielder’s choice by Jacob Howell (Fr., Ashland, Ohio/Ashland), before Steve Caravati (Jr., Dover, Ohio/Dover) singled down the right line to score Kinnear and make it a one-run game with only one out. Florida Atlantic reliever Chris Saxton, who entered the game in the seventh inning, then got a fly out by Jedidiah Stephen (So., Caldwell, Ohio/Shenandoah) and then struck out Brett Hatcher (Jr., Bellefontaine, Ohio/Bellefontaine) to end the game.
Kinnear finished 3-for-4 with a pair of RBI and scored one run to pace the Buckeyes who out-hit the Owls 12-11. Anderson and Howell added two hits apiece for Ohio State. Jeff Fiorentino led Florida Atlantic in going 3-for-3 from the plate. He scored twice and batted in a run. Tim Mascia and Rusty Brown each had two RBI.
The early story of the game appeared to be with Buckeye starter Josh Newman (Jr., Wheelersburg, Ohio/Wheelersburg), who got off to an impressive start in his sixth start of the season. Through the first two innings, he struck out six batters. The difference was he hit the third batter of the first inning and then gave up a double, but he came back to strike out Tim Mascia to end the inning. In the second, he struck out the first batter before walking Alex Fonseca. He was then called for his fourth balk of the season, but rallied to strike out the next two batters. Ohio State could not capitalize on Newman’s pitching in the first three innings. It mustered three hits, a single in the first by Howell and singles by Hatcher and Jeffrey Carroll (Fr., Columbus, Ohio/Bishop Watterson) in the second.
All three outs of the third again were Newman strikeouts giving him nine strikeouts through three innings. The difference in the inning was the three runs posted on the scoreboard by Florida Atlantic. Newman struck out Derek Hutton before walking Evan Brannon. Newman then gave up back to back single to shallow center field to load the bases before striking out Mascia. A base hit to shallow right field by Rusty Brown scored both Brannon and Jeff Fiorentino. Fonseca singled to score Rob Horst, who moved to third on the single by Brown, to make the score 3-0.
Newman could not get any of the first four batters of the fourth inning and was pulled after allowing four runs on two hits and his own error. Newman gave up a leadoff single and then he fielded a bunt to his left, but misplayed the ball allowing Hutton to reach base. Hafer went to third on the throwing error. Brannon reached on a fielder’s choice as Carroll, the Buckeye first baseman threw high to home not allowing Kinnear, the Buckeye catcher, to apply the tag of the scoring Hafer. Fiorentino singled to shallow right to score Hutton to make the score 5-0. That marked the end of Newman.
Trent Luyster (Jr., Flushing, Ohio/Harrison Central) came on and gave up a single through the left side before giving up a two-RBI single to give the Owls a 7-0 lead. The Buckeye defense turned a double play and Luyster struck out Fonseca to end the inning.
The Buckeyes finally posted a run in the fifth inning. Carroll reached on a fielder’s choice that caught Garrard at second, but a throw by Fonseca, the Florida Atlantic shortstop, sailed past first allowing Carroll to reach second. Mike Rabin (Jr., West Chester, Ohio/Lakota East) singled up the middle to score the Buckeyes first run of the game and make the score 7-1.
After getting the Owls in order in the bottom of the fifth, Ohio State erupted for four runs in the sixth with the aid of three Florida Atlantic errors and one hit. Caravati reached on a fielding error by the FAU third baseman and Stephen reached on a fielder’s choice. Caravati was safe as Fonseca moved in front of Hutton, the Owl second baseman. Garrard drew his second straight walk to load the bases full of Buckeyes.
Stephen moved to third on a fly out by Hatcher and then all runners moved up on a wild pitch by Florida Atlantic starter Will Mann, including Stephen, who scored to make the score 7-2. Paul Farinacci (Jr., Westlake Village, Calif./Agoura Hills) returned front a sprained ankle to pinch hit for Carroll, but grounded out, failing to advance the runners. Rabin walked to load up the bases again and then Kinnear doubled to the gap in left-center field to plate both Stephen and Garrard to pull the Buckeyes with three and then an error on Brown, the first baseman allowed Rabin to score to make the score 7-5.
The Buckeyes stepped it up on defense behind Luyster allowing only two hits in the final four innings of the game, including 1-2-3 innings in the fifth and seventh innings. Only one Florida Atlantic base runner moved into scoring position in the sixth inning.
Ohio State went in order in the seventh inning, but Garrard singled through the right side to lead off the eighth inning. Any threat ended when Farinacci grounded into a 6-4-3 double play and then Rabin grounded out to end the inning. It was the fourth double play turned by the Owls in the game.
Mann picked up the win for Florida Atlantic to improve to 3-0, while Newman got the loss despite nine strikeouts through three innings. He did allow seven runs on seven hits and walked two batters. Luyster pitched the final five innings and added four strikeouts while not allowing a run on four hits.
Newman’s nine strikeouts now give him 227 career strikeouts, which put him in 11th place on the school’s all-time list. He trails E.J. Laratta (1999-2002) by seven strikeouts for 10th place. The nine strikeouts Wednesday were the most by Newman this season and two off his all-time high off 11 against Michigan in 2001.
Ohio State will have the weekend off before its home opener against March 31 against Eastern Michigan at 6:35 p.m. at Bill Davis Stadium. The Buckeyes opened the season with its first 16 games on the road.
