Baseball Loses A Close One in the Final Innings
by Colin Smith

The Yeomen appeared poised to win in Wednesday’s game against Case Western until Case exploded with eight runs in the last two innings to take the game 13-11. The loss dropped Oberlin’s record to 2-16. Oberlin was coming off a Spring Break trip to Ft. Myers, Fla. where they went 1-5.

“It was a bit of a tough trip for us,” Head Coach Eric Lahetta said, “We didn’t play up to our caliber.”
The Yeomen’s lone win on the trip came against Lawrence University on March 25, in extra innings. “[First-year] Troy DeWitt was the hero in that one,” Lahetta said. DeWitt pitched a complete game and knocked in the winning run with a two-out single in the eighth.
The Yeomen came home to Dill Field for three games against Allegheny College on Saturday, March 31 and Sunday, April 1. They lost by scores of 7-0 and 19-1 on Saturday and 17-8 on Sunday. 
“The majority of our team was playing high school baseball a year ago, and the majority of their team was playing for a national championship,” Lahetta said of the games against Allegheny. Allegheny is ranked fourth in the country and is consistently among the top Division III schools for baseball.
Wednesday’s game against Case Western looked to be a more even match, as Case entered the game at 5-9. Case scored first with three runs in the second, including a pair of solo home runs to open the inning. The Oberlin starter, first-year Robert Smith, settled in after that, allowing just two runs — only one was earned — on seven hits while striking out four over the next five innings. Smith, who began the season as a relief pitcher, is emerging as a top starter, leading the team with a 5.40 ERA.
“[Smith]’s our ace right now,” first-year Ian Haynes said. “Rob’s the only one getting outs for us.”
“I feel like I’m pitching effectively,“ Smith said of his stats. “I’m doing my best out there. All five of [the starting pitchers] are pretty solid. We’re all pretty much equals,” As for the transition to starter, he said, “Pitching is pitching. I’ll do it whenever.” 
Oberlin’s offense came roaring back in the third and fourth. DeWitt doubled home two in the third to cut Case’s lead to 3-2. In the fourth, the Yeomen took advantage of some sloppy fielding by Case to take the lead. With two outs, Haynes and senior Chris Irish, who has been getting on base at a .521 clip, worked back-to-back walks. DeWitt reached on an error by the first baseman to load the bases for sophomore Zach Pretzer. On a 3-2 pitch with the runners on the move, Pretzer lined a single into right center field that drove in two runs to tie the game. On the same play DeWitt scored the go-ahead run on a throwing error by the second baseman. Pretzer came all the way around to score on the throwing error and an error by the catcher, to make the score 6-4 in Oberlin’s favor. Pretzer went four for five in the game to raise his team-leading average to .386.
The Yeomen added another pair of runs in the sixth on a single by DeWitt and an RBI groundout by junior Bob Montag, increasing the lead to 8-5.
Smith finally showed signs of tiring in the top of the eighth as Case got back into the game and reclaimed the lead. Smith surrendered a solo home run to open the inning. The next four batters reached on three singles and an error, bringing home one and cutting Oberlin’s lead to 8-7. The next batter hit into a fielder’s choice at second, which brought in another run to tie it. With runners on first and third Case pulled off a double steal to take the lead. Another pair of singles and an Oberlin error brought in two more runs to make Cases’s lead 11-8. Smith was lifted in favor of Pretzer, who got the first batter he faced to ground into a double play to end the inning. Smith finished the day having given up 11 runs — two were unearned — on 16 hits over seven and a third innings, raising his ERA to 6.92. He did not walk a batter.
“Smith pitched much better than his numbers indicate,” Lahetta said. “He is an outstanding pitcher who knows what he has to do to get people out.”
“I wasn’t tired,” Smith said. “I could’ve gone all nine, but they figured out how to hit me.”
The Yeomen were not out of it yet, though. DeWitt and Pretzer led off the bottom of the eighth with back to back singles. Montag followed with a walk. First-year Chris Bamat reached on an error that scored two and left runners at first and third. First-year John Damron singled to drive in the tying run. Case retired the next three Yeomen in order to end the inning.

Pretzer returned to the mound in the top of the ninth and got into trouble quickly. The first two batters singled, and with runners at first and third and one out, Case executed another double-steal, bringing in the go-ahead run. They added an insurance run to make it 13-11 before Pretzer retired the side.
The Yeomen threatened once more in the bottom of the ninth. With two out and nobody on, Pretzer singled and Bob Montag walked, but Chris Bamat struck out looking to end the game.
“It was a game I think we should have definitely won,” Haynes said. “We handed them a win.”
The Yeomen’s 11 runs matched a season high for offense. “Our whole team hit the ball pretty well,” Damron, two for four in the game, said. “[Winning]’s a matter of putting everything together at the same time.”
The Yeomen will look to put everything together in their three games against Kenyon this weekend, April 7 and 8.