Baseball splits OAC doubleheader 5-2, 0-4 with Mount Union

By Blake Moore

ADA — Junior pitchers Jack Schaller (Bowling Green) and Josh Mohr (Oregon/Clay) and sophomore shortstop Michael Rocco (Orlando, Fla./Zionsville, Ind.) guided the Ohio Northern baseball program to a season-series split with Ohio Athletic Conference foe Mount Union Saturday afternoon at Wander Field, winning game one 5-2 before falling 4-0 in the nightcap.

With the weekend split, the Polar Bears move to 10-11 overall and 2-4 in league play. Meanwhile, the Purple Raiders rise to 15-7 overall and a similar 2-4 mark against the OAC.

In game one, Schaller earned the win on the mound after tossing 5.1 strong innings. The junior allowed just two earned runs in the contest on seven hits while striking out three.

Mohr recorded his first career save in the opener after relieving Schaller over the final 3.2 innings. The Oregon, Ohio native surrendered just one hit and struck out five batters to secure the first game victory.

At the plate, Rocco continued his offensive success with a five-for-eight performance over the two-game set, including a perfect four-for-four showing in game one. The sophomore also recorded two critical RBI in the opener, scored a run, and stole a base Saturday afternoon.

Rocco kicked off the scoring in game one with a two-RBI single lined into center field in the home half of the second inning. The Polar Bears increased their early lead in the third frame when freshman Corey McMann (Flower Mound, Tex./Liberty Christian) found open real estate in left field for an RBI single.

The Purple Raiders battled back in the contest after tallying a run in the fifth and another score in the sixth, cutting the lead to 3-2.

However, Rocco scored on a wild pitch in the sixth inning and sophomore catcher Tyler Randick (Flushing, Mich.) added a sacrifice fly in the seventh to create an insurmountable 5-2 advantage.

During the nightcap, Mount Union jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the third frame with two unearned runs. From there, the Purple Raiders tacked on one run in the sixth and one more in the ninth to split Saturday's twinbill.

On the mound, junior Nate Bye (Thorntown, Ind./Western Boone) had a solid outing, tossing seven innings and conceding just one earned run. He would also strike out three batters for a team-high 25 strikeouts on the season.

Ohio Northern was slated to host area-rival Bluffton tomorrow afternoon at 1 p.m., but the contest was postponed due to impending inclement weather. ONU will return to action on Tuesday at Baldwin Wallace for an OAC doubleheader. First pitch in game one is set for 1 p.m. at Fisher Field in Berea.