COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The Lake Erie College baseball team continued their season in Columbus, March 26th and 27th on the road to face the Ohio Dominican Panthers. After losing both contests on day one, the Storm would bounce back and take both games on day two and split their first series of the season.
GAME 1 - 3/26
The first two innings of the game were not kind to Storm pitching, with Ohio Dominican jumping out to an early 6-0 lead. Lake Erie didn't let it crush their spirits though and quickly cut that lead in half the next inning. In the top of the third Mark Ross started the inning with a walk and advanced after a Zack Hoskins double to left center. With
Israel Espinosa up at the plate, Ohio Dominican would help out the Storm with a wild pitch which would advance both runners and put a run on the board.
Espinosa would put the ball in play later in the at-bat and reach first on an error by the Panthers third baseman and give the Storm another run as Hoskins crossed home. Lake Erie would earn one more run in the inning on another fielding error by the Panthers and the Storm would find themselves quickly back in the game.
Next inning, Lake Erie would trim the Panthers lead on a
Justin Major solo shot to left and later with an Espinosa single to score Hoskins.
Ohio Dominican would put one more run on the board in the bottom of the seventh and finish with a 7-5 win.
Cadiz and Hoskins would each tally two hits in the game with and score three runs between the two of them.
GAME 2 - 3/26
Lake Erie struggled to get their offense rolling in the second game of the day and four defensive miscues cost them five runs. The top of the Storm lineup in Espinosa,
Graham Solak and Cadiz would record the only hits for the team in contest as Lake Erie fell 9-0 to end the day.
GAME 3 - 3/27
After two disappointing losses the day before. The Storm looked to end the series with an even split.
Zach Saffell would get the start on the mound and throw a complete seven innings, surrendering just six hits while striking out eight.
Then Panther's lone run would come in the bottom of the third with Saffell working in and out of trouble.
The Storm bats would stay quiet however until the final inning. After the first two batter would get out, Espinosa would be hit by a pitch and Solak would reach on a fielding error by the third baseman. Cadiz would come up clutch next at-bat and double home both runs, giving Lake Erie the lead and subsequently the win.
GAME 4 - 3/27
With a win finally under their belt, a series split was just on the horizon for the Storm.
For the first time in the series, Lake Erie would be the first to strike. In the top of the second, Hoskins would drive in
Sebastian Silva with a single back to the pitcher.
The Panthers would take a 2-1 lead however in the bottom of the third but in the top of the fifth the Storm would take that lead back by capitalizing on Ohio Dominican errors.
Both teams would battle back-and-forth by trading leads but it would be the Storm who would finally break things open as they scored six runs during the next three innings and finish off with 10-5 win and the series split.
Solak would go 2-3 and drive in two RBIs in the game and
Robert Helt would smash the Storm's lone home run in the game.
Cadiz finishes the series going 8-14 (.571) with three RBIs, two doubles, two walks and two stolen bases.
The series now takes the Storm's record to 4-19, and improves their conference record to 3-5. They will be back in action on Saturday April 1-2 for a four-game series against the Trevecca Nazarene Trojans for Lake Erie's first home series of the year.
