Baseball sweeps Otterbein 3-1 and 6-5 to improve to 4-0 in conference play

Baseball sweeps Otterbein 3-1 and 6-5 to improve to 4-0 in conference play
Box Score Box Score
April 1, 2025

WESTERVILLE — The Ohio Northern baseball team improved to 4-0 in Ohio Athletic Conference play with two road wins at Otterbein, 3-1 and 6-5, on Tuesday.

The Basics

  • Records: Ohio Northern (16-6 Overall, OAC 4-0), Otterbein (12-12, 2-4 Overall).
  • Venue: Fishbaugh Field - Westerville, Ohio.

Game One, W 3-1

  • Sophomore Kyler Lapp (Hall, Ill.) gave ONU an early lead with an RBI single in the 1st inning. 
  • Freshman Charlie Oakleaf (New Albany) scored on an error in the 4th.
  • Northern would add one more in the 4th when Zane Pratt grounded out, and senior Andrew Stechschulte (Findlay) scored making it 3-0. 
  • Northern would get two more runs on an RBI double by sophomore Kyle Callahan (Brunswick) in the bottom of the ninth.
  • Senior Blake Peterson (Belle Center/Benjamin Logan) pitched 7.0 innings and gave up no runs on his way to picking up the win for the Polar Bears. 
  • Freshman Jackson Saylor (Springboro) got the save for the Polar Bears, his first of the season and career. 

Game Two, W 6-5

  • Lapp kicked things off for the Polar Bears once again, this time on an RBI double making it 1-0 in the 1st. 
  • Oakleaf kept the ball rolling hitting a double of his own scoring two more for the Polar Bears, wrapping up a 3-run 1st inning. 
  • Otterbein got two runs back in the 2nd making it 3-2.
  • Sophomore Evan Russ (Westfield, Ind.) gave the Polar Bears some cushion when he grounded into a fielder's choice, scoring junior Chase Armstrong (Louisville, Ky./Trinity) in the 3rd.
  • Russ got another RBI in the 7th which pushed the lead to 5-2.
  • Oakleaf continued his impressive day at the plate with an RBI single to wrap up the 7th, providing even more insurance for Ohio Northern.
  • Senior Joe Tootle (Powell/Olentangy Liberty) started on the mound for Northern pitching a solid 6.0 innings, only allowing 2 runs on the day, which earned him the win.
  • Senior Blake Altaffer (Montpelier) got the save for the Polar Bears tossing the final 3.0 innings of the game. 

Notables

  • Ohio Northern now trails in the all-time series 65-71 against Otterbein.
  • Through 22 games this season, Russ leads the Polar Bears with a .345 batting average, going 20-for-58 with 17 RBI.
  • With this save, Altaffer is tied for 9th in team hsitory with 5 saves. 
  • Junior Chase Armstrong (Louisville, Ky./Trinity) has now recorded 98 hits in 96 games. He is also tied for 7th all-time at ONU with 20 career home runs.
  • Stechschulte has 96 hits in 107 games.
  • Ohio Northern is in its 120th season of baseball. The Polar Bears are 1482-1160-20 all-time, a winning percentage of .557.
  • 14th-year head coach Gene Stechschulte is now 294-212 at Ohio Northern for a winning percentage of .581.

Up Next

  • The Polar Bears will return to action on Saturday when they travel to face off in a Ohio Athletic Conference double header against Muskingum at 1 p.m at Mose Morehead Field.