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Game One Box Score (PDF) | Game Two Box Score (PDF) 

ATHENS, Ohio – The Ohio baseball team (5-3) returned to action on Saturday (March 6) afternoon, sweeping Milwaukee (0-6) in a doubleheader at Bob Wren Stadium. The Bobcats downed the Panthers in game one, 3-1, before taking game two, 6-4 in a back-and-fourth battle.

Ohio clinched its first series victory under interim head coach Craig Moore courtesy of the doubleheader sweep. The series win marked the first for the Bobcats since taking two of three games at Western Michigan to close out the 2019 regular season.

GAME ONE: Ohio 3, Milwaukee 1 (7 innings)
The Bobcats were able to capitalize on pitching miscues in the fifth inning to help secure the win.

Redshirt junior second baseman Michael Richardson (Cambridge, Md.) recorded an RBI double. Senior first baseman Aaron Levy (Cincinnati, Ohio) also had a double, while redshirt junior right fielder Spencer Harbert (Middletown, Del.) and redshirt senior shortstop Joe Weisenseel (Strongsville, Ohio) all picked up base hits. 

Ohio took the early lead in the bottom of the third inning when Richardson doubled to left center just past the diving Milwaukee left fielder, scoring Weisenseel, giving the Bobcats the 1-0 lead after three frames. 

Ohio extended their lead in the fifth when the Bobcats' baserunners took advantage of two Milwaukee wild pitches that allowed senior left fielder Sebastian Fabik (Lebanon, Ohio) and Weisenseel to score, putting Ohio up 3-0 going to the sixth inning. 

The Panthers' lone run of the game came in the top of the seventh on a wild pitch, cutting the Ohio lead to 3-1 with two outs. However, senior right handed pitcher Edward Kutt IV (Westlake, Calif.) got the final batter of the game to ground out, sealing the victory. 

The Ohio pitching duo of junior right-handed starting pitcher Colin Sells (Lancaster, Ohio) and Kutt IV pitched seven innings of one-run baseball. Sells worked five innings, allowing no run on three hits and two walks. He struck out three on his way to earning his first victory of the season. Kutt IV pitched two innings, striking out three while allowing one run on one hit. He earned his first save of the year. 

Meanwhile, the three Milwaukee pitchers combined to allow three runs on four hits, while walking three and striking out five. Junior starting right handed pitcher Mike Edwards pitched 4.2 innings, allowing all three runs and striking out three Bobcat batters. 

GAME TWO: Ohio 6, Milwaukee 4 (7 Innings) 
With the game tied at 4-4 in the bottom of the sixth inning, back-to-back singles by Fabik and Hafner gave Ohio the 6-4 lead late in the game. The Ohio defense held strong in the top of the seventh, sealing the 6-4 win and the doubleheader sweep for the Bobcats.

"We've got a bunch of guys who just grind," said Fabik, who came off the bench to play right field in the sixth inning. "Anybody coming off the bench is going to have the full confidence of the team. I was fortunate enough to be in that situation, but we've all got confidence in each other, and we're playing good baseball right now."

Milwaukee outhit, Ohio 9-7, but the Bobcats were able to capitalize on four Panther miscues throughout the seven innings. 

Senior center fielder Isaiah Peterson (Lincoln, Neb.) recorded two hits with two runs scored while Hafner logged two hits, including a home run, and three RBIs. 

The Panthers struck first in the top of the first inning, taking a 1-0 lead on an RBI single to left center from sophomore third baseman Nate DeYoung. Milwaukee added a run in the top of the third inning, taking a 2-0 lead going to the bottom of the frame. 

Ohio struck in the bottom of the third, scoring three runs on two hits while capitalizing on two Milwaukee errors, giving the Bobcats a 3-2 lead after three innings. 

A pivotal point in game two came in the top of the fourth inning when the Panthers loaded the bases with one out, only for freshman right-handed starting pitcher Logan Jones (Canton, Ohio) to strike out the final two batters of the inning to hold the Bobcats' lead going to the bottom of the fourth. 

Graduate student third baseman Trevor Hafner (Perrysburg, Ohio) extended the Bobcats' lead in the bottom of the fifth inning on a solo homer to put Ohio up 4-2. 

Milwaukee tied the game in the top of the sixth inning, scoring two runs on three hits and capitalizing on an Ohio error, tying the game at 4-4 going into the home half. The Bobcats answered in the home half, though, thanks to timely hitting by Fabik and Hafner that ultimately decided the contest.

On the mound for Ohio, Jones pitched 4.2 innings, fanning eight while allowing two runs on five hits and a walk. Senior left-handed pitcher Brett Manis (Perrysburg, Ohio) entered the game to pitch 2.2 frames, allowing two runs on four hits. He struck out two and was credited with the pitching win.

The Milwaukee pitching duo of redshirt junior left-handed starting pitcher Nick Winter and redshirt sophomore right-handed pitcher Ryan Hoerter tossed six innings, allowing six runs, two of which were earned, on seven hits and five walks. He finished with eight strikeouts.

Ohio will wrap up the weekend series against Milwaukee on Sunday (March 7) at noon ET at The Wren as the Bobcats go for the four-game series sweep of the Panthers.

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