The Ashland University baseball team started its second opportunity to defend its 2019 Midwest Region title on Thursday (March 4) and came away with two 11-8 wins at the Wilson Tobs Division II Baseball Classic in Wilson, N.C.
The Eagles (2-0), ranked No. 16 in the NCBWA poll, scored seven runs in the seventh inning to overcome a 7-3 deficit to beat Cedarville in the opener.
Against host Barton in the nightcap, freshman right-hander
Jake Depperschmidt threw seven scoreless relief innings and the Eagles scored three unearned runs in the 13
th inning to beat the Bulldogs, 11-8.
It was Ashland's longest game since a 6-2 win over Malone in 18 innings on April 25, 2015.
Ashland 11, Cedarville 8
The Eagles took a 3-1 lead in the third inning as junior
Alex Whipple ripped an RBI single to tie the game before junior
Austin Eifrid hit a two-run single through the middle that scored Whipple and junior
Mike Flemming.
The Eagles' lead didn't last long as the Yellow Jackets (2-1) played five runs on no hits, an error and six walks in the fourth inning to take a 6-3 lead.
Junior left-hander
Alex Bish came on to finish the inning then retired Cedarville in order in the fifth and sixth innings before the Jackets got another run in the seventh to make it 7-3.
The Eagles started the bottom of the seventh with four straight walks and a hit batter to make it 7-5 before senior
Garett Robberts roped a bases-clearing double that gave Ashland an 8-7 lead. Robberts would eventually score on a sac fly by junior
Logan Stoldt and the Eagles scored another run on a steal play with runners at the corners, plating junior
Dillan Smith.
The Jackets added one in the eighth, but an RBI hit by senior
Carson Mittermaier in the bottom half pushed AU's lead to 11-8.
Junior right-hander
Perry Bewley came on with one out and a runner on in the ninth and eventually struck out Kale Ebling and got Blais Hale to foul out with the bases loaded.
Bish (1-0) earned the win for his 4 2/3 innings of relief work. He allowed just one earned run and struck out 10. Bewley got the save. Junior
Jacob Harsany got the start and gave up two earned runs with five strikeouts in 3 2/3 innings.
Mittermaier led the offense with three hits and Robberts was 2-for-4 with two doubles and three RBI. Eifrid was 1-for-2 with two runs, two walks and a stolen base.
Ashland 11, Barton 8 (13 innings)
The Eagles trailed 3-0 through four innings against Barton, but rallied for five runs in the fifth with a run scoring on a bases loaded walk by Mittermaier, an RBI hit by Robberts and a run-scoring groundout by Smith.
Mittermaier's RBI single in the seventh made it 7-3 and a double steal with Robberts taking the plate gave Ashland a five-run lead.
Barton came back in the bottom of the seventh with five runs on just two hits and an error, tying the game at 8.
Depperschmidt got the final two outs of that inning, then proceeded to mow down the Barton lineup, retiring 16 batters in a row until a two-out single in the 12
th.
Meanwhile the Eagles struggled to get their offense going. They stranded a runner at third in the ninth and couldn't bring in Mittermaier, who reached on a two-out triple in the 11
th.
Ashlannd finally broke through in the 13
th as junior
Logan Moss was hit by a pitch and freshman
Devin Hukill drew a walk to start the inning. Eifrid then tried to bunt them over, but Barton third baseman Dylan Scaranda booted the ball to allow Moss and Hukill to score and let Eifrid get all the way to third. Eifrid eventually scored on a wild pitch to make it 11-8.
Depperschmidt struck out two in a perfect 13
th inning to seal the victory. He struck out 11 and did not walk a batter in his 11 innings.
Freshman
Justin Dyksma got the start and gave up two earned runs in 3 2/3 innings. Junior
Justin Mercer threw two scoreless innings in relief.
Mittermaier had three hits and two RBI in the nightcap while Eifrid, Robberts, and freshman
Kristian Scalf had two hits apiece.
The Eagles will now play Tiffin at 11 a.m. on Friday (March 5) in the third of four games in Wilson, N.C.
AU
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