Tucson, Arizona – The Oberlin College baseball team dropped both of its games in the Arizona sun on Tuesday, falling 11-10 to Carthage and 16-7 to Carleton.
 
With the setbacks, the Yeomen fell to 7-8 overall and are now an even 4-4 on the trip with six games still remaining.
 
Carthage Recap
 
The Yeomen jumped on the Red Men, scoring six runs in the first two innings, but could not make it stand up in the end as Carthage charged back to steal away the victory.
 
In the top of the first, two of the first three Oberlin hitters reached via a hit-by-pitch and Andrew Hutson then followed with a single to center to load the bases for Danny Baldocchi. The 6-foot-4 senior first baseman delivered a two-run single to right center to score Mitch Novak and Jeff Schweighoffer to stake the Yeomen an early lead.
 
In the second, Oberlin put together a two-out rally as Kyle Decker got things going with an RBI single through the left side to score Ryan Bliss after he doubled. Schweighoffer, who was 3-for-3 in the game, then belted a three-run home run over the wall in left for his first round-tripper of the season.
 
Unfortunately, the Yeomen lead slowly started to shrink as the Red Men tied the game by scoring two runs each in innings two through four.
 
Oberlin would retake the lead in the seventh on Hutson's sac fly to right, but Carthage would go top for good in the bottom of the inning on Reed Hero's two-run home run.
 
In the eighth, the Red Men added on what proved to be very critical insurance runs as the Yeomen entered ninth facing a four-run deficit.
 
In their final at-bat, two hit-by-pitches and single by Schweighoffer loaded the bases for Benjamin Whitener with two outs. The senior captain from Washington, D.C. would not let his teammates down as he hammered the ball to the gap in right center to clear the bases and cut the Carthage lead down to one.
 
However, Red Men closer Chris Pedrak was able to get Justin Cruz to ground out to second to end the game.
 
Oberlin starter Justin Kidd lasted just two-plus innings before he was lifted in favor of Jordan Cohen, who took the loss after working four innings. He is now 1-4 on the season.
 
Carleton Recap
 
Against the Knights, the Yeomen elected to shakeup the lineup and saw some positive results as the team finished with 14 hits, but stranded 12 runners on base.
 
Junior John Evans had a career day, as he was 3-for-5 with a triple, run scored and an RBI. Rookies Quin Butler and Sam Harris also had two hits each for the Yeomen.
 
However, the Knights came out swinging, scoring eight runs in the first two innings to put the Yeomen in a large hole.
 
Oberlin scratched a run across in the second on Brian Hemmert's RBI double to left center, scoring freshman Jack Brewster after he singled.
 
The Yeomen made it an 8-2 game in the fourth as Schweighoffer worked a bases-loaded walk, but the inning came to end with three men still on.
 
Carleton would go on to add eight more runs over the next four innings to leave no doubt in the eventual outcome.
 
Oberlin did have a nice sixth inning, scoring three runs on four hits. After singles by Evans and Harris, Darren Zaslau drew a walk to load the bases with nobody out.  Sophomore Mike Masella continued his promising play, sending an RBI single back up the middle before Butler found a hole on the left side to plate two more runs.
 
Brandon Bertot got things going in the ninth as he dropped in a single down the left field line and would then come around to score on Daniel Becker's deep shot to straightaway centerfield that went down for an RBI triple. Evans then racked up his third hit of the contest with a run-producing single through the left side to cap the game's score.
 
Decker, who tripled and walked twice, has now hit safely in 12 straight games.
 
These same two teams will do it again tomorrow with first pitch against Carthage set for 9 a.m. PDT.