Maryville, Tennessee – A day after suffering two difficult loses, the Oberlin College baseball team had their hearts broken again against Maryille Sunday afternoon. After falling behind 4-0 in the first inning, the Yeomen battled back to take a 5-4 lead heading into the bottom of the ninth, before eventually falling, 7-5. The loss moves the Yeomen to 0-3 on the season.
 
Freshman pitcher Samuel Labrecque got the start on the bump for Oberlin. After a rough first inning that saw The Fighting Scots take a commanding 4-0 lead, Labrecque settled down. 
 
"It took me an inning to realize it, but I'm good enough to be here," Labrecque said. "That helped me calm the nerves. This team is the same way. We didn't quite get there this weekend, but this team will realize we're good enough to win a lot of games this year."
 
In the right-hander's first collegiate outing, he battled through four innings, surrendering six hits and four runs. 
 
In the top of the second, the Yeomen got on the board courtesy of a two-run single from sophomore first baseman Kyle Baxt that scored freshman Matthew Ruttkay and Jeffery Chen to make it a 4-2 game.
 
In the top of the third, the Yeomen took the lead on the backs of new freshman faces. 
 
After loading the bases with one out, a single from Ruttkay plated sophomore right fielder Brady Groves to make it a 4-3 game. The next batter, freshman left fielder Jack Braddell walked to score freshman shortstop Ryan Robinson to knot the score at 4. Chen kept the offense coming for the Yeomen, plating senior third baseman Zachary Ritts on an RBI fielder's choice to give Oberlin a 5-4 lead.
 
After taking the lead, the Yeomen bullpen held strong. 
 
Freshman right-hander Kaes Carter was dominant in relief. The 6 '4 righty went three innings, striking out three while giving up no runs to keep the score at 5-4 heading into the eighth.
 
"It felt great helping the team," Carter said regarding his performance. "I was happy I could put us in a position to win the game"
 
In the bottom of the eighth, the Yeomen turned to sophomore pitcher Davis Hayes. After Maryville put runners on second and third with one out, Hayes got the next two batters to fly out to send the game into the ninth, with the Yeomen still ahead 5-4.
 
In the bottom of the ninth, the first two batters reached before Maryville connected on a three-run, walk-off home run to end the game.
 
The young squad returns to action on Saturday, March 1 when they head south again to take on Berea College. First pitch is scheduled for 12 p.m.
 
Fans can keep up with their favorite teams on Instagram, Facebook, X, or TikTok, and watch all the home matches live online. The Crimson and Gold's home broadcasts can be accessed on TV through the official Oberlin College Sports Network app on Roku, Apple TV, and Amazon Fire TV.