Box Score
Oberlin, Ohio – The Oberlin College baseball team established a new school record for wins in a season, earning a thrilling come-from-behind, 7-6, victory in walk-off fashion in the bottom of the 10th inning against Ohio Northern University on Tuesday afternoon.
Sophomore
Jeff Schweighoffer proved to be the hero as he roped a two-out single back up the middle that ricocheted off of the pitcher's leg towards third base to allow pinch runner
Nathaniel Wehr to score the game-winning run and etch this 2013 Yeomen team into the record books.
However, Schweighoffer would not have had the opportunity to be the hero if it were not for fellow sophomore
Andrew Hutson who tied the game in the bottom of the ninth with a two-out two-run bases-loaded bloop-single to make it 6-6.
Freshman
Jesse Kohler continued to impress out of the Yeomen bullpen as he pitched two-innings of no-hit baseball to improve to 3-1 on the season. He was one of six different Oberlin hurlers to make an appearance in the game.
With the victory, the Yeomen improved to 19-18 on the year, besting that of the 2010 squad that finished the season at 18-19. Current assistant coaches
Brandon Cantrill and
Phil Brua were both members of that squad, which was managed by current Assistant Athletics Director and assistant coach
Eric Lahetta.
The Yeomen dug themselves a hole early on as the Polar Bears scored four runs over the first three innings to lead 4-0. In fact the Yeomen's first hit of the game didn't come until the fourth inning when
Eric Knight finally got a single to left center to drop off of ONU starter Zach Maier.
It would remain a 4-0 deficit until the bottom of the sixth inning when the Yeomen finally broke through for three runs.
Ryan Bliss started the inning with a bunt single and
Mitch Novak would leg-out a hustle double to put two men in scoring position for Schweighoffer. He then smashed in a sinking-line drive to straight away center that appeared to be caught, but was a ruled a short-hop. Nonetheless, Bliss still scored on the played, but now nobody was out. Oberlin would ultimately take advantage of the break as Hutson came through with a clutch two-out two-run double that hit off the wall in right center to score Novak and Schweighoffer.
Ohio Northern would use two hits and take advantage of two passed balls to get a pair of runs back in the top of the seventh, but Oberlin would respond with a single tally in the home-half of the inning. A leadoff double by
Blaise Dolcemaschio setup the frame as the Yeomen played small-ball to eventually send him across on a groundout by Novak to make it 6-4.
Oberlin threatened in the eighth with a pair of hits, but a base-running error cost the team an opportunity to score. ONU was retired in order in both the eighth and ninth innings and Kohler pitched around a one-out walk in the 10
th to set the stage for the Yeomen's historic comeback.
Schweighoffer, Hutson, Dolcemaschio and
Sean Cohen each had two hits in the game – accounting for eight of the team's 12 hits. Hutson also had four of the Yeomen's seven RBI's.
It was certainly a team effort for the Yeomen as 23 different players made an appearance in the game for third-year Head Coach
Adrian Abrahamowicz.
The Yeomen will travel to Wittenberg on Saturday and Sunday for the NCAC Cross-Over Weekend. The team's will play three nine-inning games with games one and two taking place on Saturday. The winner of the series will then advance to the NCAC Championship Tournament May 9-11.