ROCHESTER, Mich. – Their third victory over a school from the Mid-American Conference (MAC) this season, the Golden Grizzlies defeated the Toledo Rockets, 4-3, on Tuesday, May 9 at the Oakland Baseball Field.
Paired with the final two contests of their May 5-7 series with the Milwaukee Panthers in Franklin, Tuesday's triumph extends the Golden Grizzlies' win streak to three games and they are now 22-27 (13-11 Horizon League).
Toledo had their three-game win streak snapped and moves to 23-25 (11-13 MAC).
The middle of seven Oakland pitchers on the sunny, 67-degree afternoon, freshman right-hander
Jaxson Easterlin (2-3) picked up the win by working the seventh inning.
As has become customary when the Golden Grizzlies face a MAC opponent, junior lefty
Jake Matthaidess drew the start and went the first four-plus frames, allowing two runs on three hits with a couple of walks and four strikeouts.
Playing the first eight innings at third base, sophomore
Brandon Nigh moved to the mound in the ninth and retired the Rockets in order, earning him his second save of the campaign.
One of the MAC's top players, Archbold, Ohio junior shortstop Jeron Williams, who entered Tuesday hitting .405 while having played in all 47 of Toledo's games, started the scoring by leading off the game with a home run to left.
Junior right fielder
Lucas Loos tied it up for the Golden Grizzlies an inning later by singling, stealing second and advancing to third on a throwing error by Westerville, Ohio sophomore catcher Brayden White and scoring on a wild pitch.
On a hit that looked similar to his first, Loos put Oakland ahead for the first time, 2-1, in the fourth by plating redshirt senior shortstop
Thomas Green with a two-out bloop double.
The Rockets moved back ahead, 3-2, on a two-run home run by Waterville, Ohio sophomore right fielder Garret Pike in the fifth, but redshirt sophomore center fielder
Reagan Paulina answered right back for the Golden Grizzlies in their half of the frame by tying the contest with his first long ball of the season, a tape-measure shot to right.
Stepping to the plate with graduate student second baseman
Jared Miller on third and junior catcher
Brandon Heidal at first with no outs in the seventh, Paulina drove in the eventual game-winning run, as well, by laying a tremendous bunt down the first base line for a hit, giving him his first multiple-RBI performance of the season.
Handling the sixth and facing three Golden Grizzlies in the seventh, St. John, Indiana junior righty Matt LeLito (1-4) took the loss for Toledo.
Findlay, Ohio sophomore right-hander Patrick Dillon was the Rockets' starter, finishing with a line of three runs (two earned) on four hits with a walk and five punchouts over five innings.
Sophomore right-hander Brandon Nigh pitching the ninth inning Tuesday. Hailing from Temperance, Michigan, only about 10 miles north of Toledo, he picked up his second save of the year with a 1-2-3 frame. Photograph courtesy of Ceejay Round, Oakland University Athletics.
GRIZZVISION WITH HEAD COACH JORDON BANFIELD
OUCARES THROWS CEREMONIAL FIRST PITCHES
Prior to Tuesday's contest, two young men from OUCARES threw out ceremonial first pitches in front of one of Oakland's best crowds of the season.
Established nearly two decades ago, OUCARES is committed to improving the quality of life for individuals on the Autism spectrum and their families. If you are interested in learning more about this program, please visit
this link.
Photographs courtesy of Ceejay Round, Oakland University Athletics.
UP NEXT
Hoping to make a run at moving up in the Horizon League standings before the conclusion of the regular season, Oakland will return to conference play with a weekend series against Purdue Fort Wayne at Mastodon Field from Friday-Sunday, May 12-14.
The Golden Grizzlies swept the Mastodons in their previous set at the Oakland Baseball Field from April 6-8.
