ROCHESTER, Mich. - The Golden Grizzlies baseball squad looks to build its win streak as it turns to Ohio for a newly scheduled game at Cincinnati today (Feb. 29) with first pitch set for 4:00 p.m., and will face Miami (Ohio) for a weekend series starting Friday (March 1), with first pitch set for 3:00 p.m.
 
The Golden Grizzlies previously scheduled game against Bellarmine, slated for Feb. 28, was canceled due to weather and field conditions.
 
The Golden Grizzlies (3-3, 0-0 HL) opened up its weekend series against Eastern Kentucky with a loss, but bounced back in the final two games and outscored the Colonels, 24-9, to take the series.
 
Brandon Nigh opened up the scoring on the weekend before the Colonels grabbed three runs in the second. Oakland tied things up with runs in the third and fourth, but a five-run fifth inning from Eastern Kentucky put it ahead to take the win. The team bounced back in a big way and held on in a tight 5-4 game to even things up.
 
Ian Cleary, Nigh and Lucas Day added three runs in the first inning for a quick lead and used a strong outing from Brandon Decker to keep the Colonels scoreless through the first third of the game. The Colonels eventually got on the board, but the Golden Grizzlies answered right back as Cleary tallied his second RBI of the day off a double. The bats kept on coming as Day nailed a home run for the 5-1 lead with three innings to go.
 
The Colonels attempted to rally as it hit one out of the park to cut its deficit to three in the seventh as Oakland held on and got six outs to bring up the ninth. The Colonels had three outs to make a comeback and nearly did as it hit two home runs, but Oakland got the final out to win, 5-4.
 
The bats were hot the following day as Oakland scored in the first inning once again as Brandon Heidal hit the teams first grand slam of the season. The Colonels answered and got two on the board, but the Golden Grizzlies bats exploded in the third as it tallied eight runs to already put the game out of reach. The game was highlighted by a five-run six inning as the Golden Grizzlies forced a mercy and took care of business, 19-5.
 
Heidal's weekend performance earned him #HLBASE Batter of the week as he was lethal from the dish against the Colonels. The senior knocked down five hits on the weekend off 10 at-bats, good for a .500 batting average. The catcher recorded six RBI in the series win which included two home runs spanned across three games. In the series finale, Heidal hit the team's first grand slam of the season during his first at-bat in the first inning as he tacked on another RBI in the win.
 
On the bump, Decker recorded his first win of the season and bounced back from his loss the week previous. The senior pitched five total scoreless innings and only allowed two runs, while he held the Colonels to six hits on 26 batters faced and struck out four.
 
Freshman Shane McAlinden will get the nod in today's sole game as he's appeared in a pair of games this season and has one hit given up in 3.0 innings pitched.
 
SCOUTING THE BEARCATS
The Bearcats (3-4, 0-0 BIG 12) come into the sole matchup on a two-game losing streak after it rattled off three-straight wins, its only wins of the season. Cincinnati opened the season up with a double header loss against Jacksonville before it faced fellow Horizon League school Northern Kentucky and took care of business, 10-2, to start its small streak. The Bearcats faced nationally-ranked Coastal Carolina and lost big, 25-2, and followed it up with an 11-9 loss against Xavier.
 
The Golden Grizzlies have met the Bearcats 11 times, dating back to a three-game series in 2006. Cincinnati holds an edge over Oakland, with a 10-1 record, as Oakland's only win came in 2012 in a close 6-5 win. Six of the last eight matchups have been no less than two-run games, as the team last visited Cincinnati in 2020. In the 2020 matchup, the Golden Grizzlies dropped both games in the double header, but battled in game two as the Bearcats won off a walk off single. All games against the Bearcars have come on the road.
 
The Bearcars have a handful of batters who have maintained their starting status on the lineup as Kerrington Cross leads the team with an impressive .500 batting average. In 22 at bats, he's knocked in nine runners off 11 hits and has hit a pair of balls out of the park. Right below him is Tommy O'Connor who's the only other batter with an above .400 batting average as he has two knocks out of the park with a .435 batting average.
 
Nathan Taylor has started in a pair of games and holds a 2-0 record, the best record on the team, as he has a 5.40 ERA in 8.1 innings pitched. He's only allowed two hits and leads the team in strikeouts with 16, as he's only given up one extra base hit.
 
First pitch from UC Baseball Stadium is slated for 4:00 p.m. ET.
 
SCOUTING THE REDHAWKS
Just like the Golden Grizzlies, the Redhawks (2-5, 0-0 MAC) come into the weekend series off a series win against Middle Tennessee as it scored a total of 30 runs between the three games. The Redhawks were scheduled to play Wright State, but weather postponed the game to make Oakland the first Horizon League team it will face this season. Miami opened up its season with four-straight losses and got outscored, 42-11, as Friday's game against Oakland marks its home opener.
 
This will be the sixth time the teams have squared off as the Redhawks hold a 4-1 record over the Golden Grizzlies. The series history between these two started in 2019 as Oakland fell in a three-game series, as the sole Golden Grizzlies win came in Oxford last season as it tacked on 12 runs. Reggie Bussey led the team with a trio of RBI as he cleared the pads off a triple. On average, the Redhawks score 9.4 runs per game, while the Golden Grizzlies score 4.6.
 
In the Redhawks seven games this season, the team has seen seven players start in all of them as Ty Batusich leads the team with seven RBI. He's also tied for the team lead, alongside Zach MacDonald, with eight hits as Batusich has knocked down a home run and two doubles. MacDonald leads the Redhawks with a trio of home runs as he's batted in six.
 
Patrick Mastrain IV is one of two pitchers for the team that has started at least two games this season, as he holds a record of 0-1. Mastrain IV has pitched the most innings amongst the team with 9.1 and has allowed 12 hits and nine earned runs for 8.68 ERA. Nick Vardavas is the only pitcher with a 1-0 record as he holds a 4.70 ERA and allows a batting average of .364.
 
First pitch from McKie Field at Hayden Park on Friday is set for 3:00 p.m.