Draper Shuts Out Chargers in Game 2
The University of Findlay baseball team split their double-header on Saturday, April 19th with the Hillsdale College Chargers as they lost the first game 6-2 and won the nightcap 8-0. The Oilers, who won the series after a win on Friday, moved their record to 11-22 overall and 8-15 in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC).
GAME 1 Box Score
Although they were outhit, the Chargers used a pair of homeruns and an early lead to bury the Oilers in a game that featured solid pitching on both sides.
Hillsdale scored on a two-run home run in the bottom of the first inning off Findlay starter Jon Walker, putting the home team ahead 2-0.
The Oilers finally broke through in the top of the fifth as Nick Antonides led off with a single and later scored on a single from Michael Louis. This brought the score to 2-1, but it would not stay that way long.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, an error and a walk resulted in two runners on for Vinny Delicata, who proceeded to hit a home run, putting the Chargers ahead 5-1.
Findlay answered with a single run in the sixth when Peter Yorgen scored on a sac fly from Louis, but that was the last run to cross the dish for the Oilers and they would eventually fall 6-2 despite outhitting the Chargers seven to four.
Walker took the loss on the mound for the Oilers as he pitched six innings and allowed six runs, five earned, on four hits. He walked three and struck out three.
Joe Sickler was the only Findlay hitter to collect two base knocks.
GAME 2 Box Score
The Oilers do-it-all pitcher/first baseman Derek Draper was the story in Game 2 as he dominated the Hillsdale lineup for seven innings.
Each team struggled to find offense in the first couple of innings, but Findlay cracked the score board and broke the game wide open with a big third inning.
The frame began with a strikeout that went awry, allowing Louis to reach first. He stole second and thene scored on a single from Yorgen, who had three hits in the game. Consecutive singles from Reid Rothenbuhler, Draper, Sickler, and Antonides pushed two more runs across the plate. A wild pitch scored Draper and a Kevin Schrock single plated Antonides and Sickler. When all was said and done, the Oilers scored six runs on six hits, putting them ahead 6-0, a daunting deficit for any opponent.
Two more runs would cross the plate in the top of the fourth when a single from Sickler scored Rothenbuhler and Yorgen. The two runs increased Findlay's lead to 8-0, the final score.
For Draper, he was as dominant as he could be, pitching the complete seven innings without allowing a run. He gave up just six hits, did not walk a batter, and struck out eight. The senior pitcher did not allow a runner past second base.
Yorgen, who scored two runs, and Antonides each had three hits in the contest while Rothenbuhler and Sickler each picked two hits.
Findlay is back on the field on Wednesday, April 23rd for a double-header at Ashland University. The games will begin at 2:00pm and 5:00pm, respectively.