ATHENS, Ohio – The Ohio baseball team (3-11, 1-0 MAC) got MAC play started Friday afternoon against Northern Illinois (7-5, 0-1 MAC) at Bob Wren Stadium. In a game that saw more than 20 combined runs scored, Ohio came out on top 14-7 to start 1-0 in conference competition.
"I thought we had some really good at-bats and took advantage of some of the free offense that they gave us, waiting for a little bit of a knockout punch," head coach Andrew See said. "There were bases loaded, and our guys did do a really good job of stretching a couple of runs across in those innings."
Ohio recorded 14 runs on 10 hits with no errors, while Northern Illinois had seven runs with six hits and two errors.
Junior outfielder Cameron Boyd (Villa Hills, Ky.) led the Bobcats against Northern Illinois with four RBI's, including a home run. Senior infielder Dylan Shepherd (Barrie, Ontario) was the other Bobcat to homer Friday night, tallying three total RBI's. Senior outfielder Cam Hill (Chicago, Ill.) tallied more hits than anyone in the game with three, including an RBI and a stolen base. Fifth-year infielder Will Henson (Chicago, Ill.) recorded two hits in the contest, with an RBI.
"I've been trusting the process with our hitting coach, kind of staying up the middle and looking for the pitches that we can handle," Shepherd said. "I was just kind of locked in during my whole at-bat, and I got an inside pitch and then turned it around, and it went on the fence."
Sophomore right-handed pitcher, Luke Bryant (Ashland, Ohio) got the start for the Bobcats, going two and two-thirds innings, allowing four earned runs and three hits while tallying one strikeout. Freshman right-hander Mason Gass (Oakdale, Pa.) was credited with the win after pitching a bulk of the innings out of the bullpen for Ohio, finishing four and one-third frames, allowing two runs and tallying six strikeouts. Senior left-handed pitcher Dillon Masters (New Albany, Ohio) finished the final two innings on the mound for Ohio.
"I live for this team. We're a big family, and it's awesome to see," Gass said. "I love playing for these guys."
Neither team was able to plate any runs in the game's first two innings, but Northern Illinois found a rhythm in the third when a two-run home run started a big inning for the Huskies that resulted in a 5-0 lead heading into the bottom half.
The Bobcats responded in a big way in the bottom of the third when an RBI single from Hill started a four-run rally. Hill would later score on a mammoth two-run homer from Boyd. Later in the inning, back-to-back doubles from redshirt junior infielder Cam Bryant (Miamisburg, Ohio) and Henson added on another run. The Bobcats finished the inning with four runs on four hits, and went into the fourth trailing the Huskies 5-4.
As Gass dominated the Huskies' hitters off the mound, the Bobcat offense had the opportunity to take the lead. Henson led off the bottom of the sixth with a single, which set up Shepherd for a go-ahead home run over the right field wall.
Now playing with a lead, the Bobcat offense blew the game open with a six-run sixth inning. Just three batters after the Shepherd homer, Ohio found itself with the bases loaded, no outs, and the top of the lineup at the plate. Walks to senior infielder Reese Harmon (Columbus, Ind.) and Boyd both scored runs before a wild pitch and a hit by pitch scored two more later in the inning to give Ohio a 10-5 lead.
Ohio's offense added two more runs in the seventh inning with junior catcher Tyler Stack (Oswego, Ill.) and Boyd both adding RBI's to the effort to make the score 12-5 in favor of the Bobcats.
Northern Illinois got two runs back in the eighth after a home run made the score 12-7.
Ohio scored a run for the third straight inning in the eighth when a fielder's choice and a wild pitch resulted in two more runs to make it 14-7 in favor of the Bobcats.
Masters retired the Huskies in order in the ninth, and Ohio secured the win 14-7.
Next up, the Bobcats return to Bob Wren Stadium for a rematch with Northern Illinois tomorrow, Saturday, March 7. That game will start at 10 a.m. ET and can be seen on ESPN+.
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