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FINAL: Kent State 6, Ohio 5 -- Athens, Ohio (Bob Wren Stadium) 

OHIO STARTERS: Manny De Jesus (CF), Rudy Rott (1B), Mitch Longo (LF), John Adryan (3B), Cody Gaertner (C), Ty Black (SS), Spencer Ibarra (RF), Nate Squires (DH), Mateus Vakuda (2B), Michael Klein (P)

KENT STATE STARTERS: Luke Burch (RF), Mason Mamarella (CF), Zarley Zalewski (DH), Dylan Rosa (3B), Conner Simonetti (1B), Alex Miklos (LF), Pete Schuler (C), Dom Iero (2B), Josh Hollander (SS), Eli Kraus (P)

THE BASICS
The Ohio baseball team (17-22, 5-10 MAC) mounted a five-run comeback over the sixth and seventh innings, but Mid-American Conference East Division rival Kent State (30-10, 12-3 MAC) tacked on a run in the top of the eighth to complete the three-game sweep in a 6-5 decision on Sunday (April 24) at Bob Wren Stadium in Athens.

The Golden Flashes swept a Saturday (April 23) doubleheader, taking the first game by a 6-0 margin and the second contest by a score of 8-0.

HOW IT HAPPENED
• Redshirt senior catcher Cody Gaertner (Pittsburgh, Pa.) was 2-for-5 with a double and three RBIs, leading the Bobcats' offense.
• Senior center fielder Manny De Jesus (Caguas, Puerto Rico) went 2-for-5.
• Junior left fielder Mitch Longo (Mayfield, Ohio) was 3-for-5 with a double and a run scored.
• Redshirt sophomore right-handed starting pitcher Michael Klein (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) got the start on the mound for Ohio, pitching five innings and allowing five earned runs on six hits and two walks. He struck out six.
• Junior right-hander Tom Colletti (Wheaton, Ill.) pitched two innings for the Bobcats out of the bullpen, allowing one earned run on one hit and two walks with two strikeouts.
• Redshirt sophomore right-handed reliever Jake Roehn (Sandwich, Ill.) tossed two scoreless innings, permitting two hits with no walks or strikeouts.
• Sophomore third baseman Dylan Rosa went 1-for-4 for the Flashes with a home run and three RBIs.
• Freshman catcher Pete Schuler was 2-for-4 with a home run.
• Sophomore left-handed starting pitcher Eli Kraus threw six innings for Kent State, permitting three runs -- two of which were earned -- on six hits and two walks. He recorded four strikeouts.
• Redshirt sophomore righty Zach Spangler pitched one inning out of the bullpen for the Golden Flashes and earned the win to improve to 4-0 on the year, allowing two runs -- one of which was earned -- on two hits and one walk.
• Sophomore right-handed reliever Zach Willeman recorded his 10th save of the season, pitching two innings and allowing one hit and one walk. He tallied two strikeouts.
• Schuler got the scoring started for the Flashes, crushing a solo homer to straight away center in the top of the second to give Kent State a 1-0 lead.
• The Flashes tacked on another run in the top of the third as junior right fielder Luke Burch came in to score on a wild pitch by Klein.
• Kent State added three more runs in the top of the fifth as Rosa crushed a three-run homer over the left field wall, scoring Burch and senior designated hitter Zarley Zalewski.
• Ohio got on the board in the bottom of the seventh when an infield single by Gaertner brought home freshman first baseman Rudy Rott (Holmen, Wisc.). The Bobcats tacked on another run as senior third baseman John Adryan (Delran, N.J.) scored on a fielder’s choice and a throwing error by Kent State, making the score 5-2 in favor of the Flashes.
• Ohio tied the game in the bottom of the seventh with a three-run inning. Junior second baseman Mateus Vakuda (Sao Paulo, Brazil) scored the first run on a passed ball that got past Schuler. Gaertner then hit a double to straight away center that scored Adryan and Longo.
• Iero gave the Flashes a 6-5 lead in the top of the eighth on a two-out single through the left side that scored junior first baseman Conner Simonetti.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
• Longo recorded his team-high 18th multi-hit performance.
• De Jesus recorded his 14th multi-hit game.
• Gaertner tallied his 14th multi-hit game of the season and his seventh multi-RBI game.

QUOTABLE
Fourth-year coach Rob Smith on his team's effort in the final four innings
"It showed we still have something left in us. Even though our situation is looking difficult right now -- we have to win the next three series, in my opinion -- but if we do what we did in the last four innings of this ballgame, we’ll have a chance to do that."

UP NEXT
Ohio is off during the week but will travel to South Bend, Ind., for a weekend series at Frank Eck Stadium against Atlantic Coast Conference foe Notre Dame (23-15).

The series is set to begin next Friday (May 29) at 6:05 p.m. ET and continue on Saturday (May 30) with first pitch slated for 2:05 p.m. ET. The series finale on Sunday (May 31) will start at 1:05 p.m. ET.

Ohio is 16-14 all-time against the Fighting Irish, with the last game between the pair being a 13-2 home decision won by the Bobcats on April 5, 1972.

Notre Dame was swept by ACC rival Florida in Tallahassee, Fla., this weekend. The Fighting Irish dropped the Friday (April 22) series opener, 12-6, before falling in 12 innings, 7-6, on Saturday and losing by an 11-6 margin on Sunday. Notre Dame will take on Big Ten Conference foe Indiana on Tuesday (April 26) in Indianapolis before playing host to MAC foe Eastern Michigan on Wednesday (April 27) prior to hosting the Bobcats next weekend.

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