ROCHESTER, Mich. — The Oakland Golden Grizzlies (8-20, 4-6 HL) fell to Milwaukee (7-23, 4-6 HL) 12-4 for the Horizon League series opener on Friday at Oakland Baseball Field. The Golden Grizzlies picked up two home runs and recorded a total of seven hits. However, a big five-run eighth inning secured the victory for the Panthers.

Junior Ben Clark made a notable impact by hitting a home run and picking up a run. Grad senior Carter Hain contributed with two RBIs and a double as fifth-year Kyle Revere also showcased his power hitting with his fifth home run of the season. Redshirt-sophomore Lucas Day was solid at the plate, going two-for-three in the box with a run scored.

Milwaukee opened the scoring with an RBI double and single to put them ahead in the opening frame. Revere responded in the bottom half with a solo home run down the right-field line.

In the fourth inning, the Golden Grizzlies took the lead as Hain doubled to left center field, driving in redshirt-sophomore Tony Konopiots and Day, as Oakland looked ahead 3-2.

Milwaukee regained control in the fifth inning, scoring four runs off of a bases-loaded walk, two-RBI double, and wild pitch. A solo home run by Charlie Marion in the sixth extended Milwaukee's lead to 7-3.

Clark's home run to deep left field in the seventh narrowed the gap, but the Panthers remained in front.

Milwaukee's offense surged in the eighth, scoring five runs with the final score landing at 12-4.

Junior left-hander George Hansen started on the mound for Oakland, pitching 4.1 innings while allowing four earned runs on three hits while picking up two strikeouts. Senior Jaxson Easterlin contributed 1.2 innings of relief, giving up one run on one hit with two strikeouts, as junior Owen Thomson and sophomore Daniel Duley provided scoreless relief, with Duley striking out one in his inning and Thomson allowing no hits.

The Golden Grizzlies and Panthers will meet again for game two of the series tomorrow, April 11. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET at the OU Baseball Field and will be available to stream on ESPN+.


How to Follow Oakland Baseball: For complete information on Oakland Baseball, follow the team on X at @OaklandBSB and head coach Brian Nelson at @CoachNelly11. The team is also on Instagram.