Baseball Drops Three More, Falls to 2-22 on Season
BY COLIN SMITH

After being swept in three games at home against Hiram on Friday, April 13 and Saturday, April 14, the Yeomen traveled to Case Western Reserve on Wednesday, April 18. The Yeomen had lost to Case 13-11 in a nail-biter earlier in the season. On Wednesday, the Yeomen again made it close, but Case held on to win it 14-13. Oberlin’s record is now 2-22 overall 0-9 in divisional play.

Hiram showed Oberlin no mercy in the weekend series, outscoring the Yeomen 35-1 in the three games and holding them to just 16 hits.
“Their pitching was pretty good,” first-year Chris Bamat said of Hiram. “They shut us down.”

In Friday’s game, the Yeomen were dominated by Hiram starter Brian Frasco, whom first-year John Damron described as “one of the best pitchers we’ve seen all year.” Case scored 16 runs for Frasco, but he only needed one as he shut out the Yeoman through seven innings. He allowed them just three hits and one walk while striking out 13, as Case took the game 16-0. The Yeomen committed seven errors in the game.
In the first game on Saturday, first-year Troy DeWitt pitched a complete game but surrendered eight runs. Case went through three pitchers, but they combined to hold Oberlin to no runs on four hits, to win the game 8-0.
The Yeomen finally got on the scoreboard in Saturday’s second game, but Hiram’s bats could not be quieted. Damron started the game, allowing 11 runs, three of which were unearned, through four innings. Robert Smith replaced him in the fifth, shutting down Hiram for the remainder of the 11-1 loss.

“It’s not experience,” Damron said of the older Hiram team, “These guys are just stronger and physically more mature.”
The Yeomen trailed for much of Wednesday’s game, but stayed within striking distance. After five innings, Case led 11-7, and through eight they led 14-10, but Oberlin put together a rally in the top of the ninth. First-year B. J. Belville came in as a pinch hitter to leadoff the inning and hit a solo home run, his second of the season, to cut the lead to 14-11.

“That was pretty badass,” Damron said of Belville’s clutch homer.
Then with a runner on, Bamat lifted one over the short porch in Case Western’s left center field to make it 14-13. Bamat went two for four in the game. “It was pretty amazing,” Bamat said. “I was pretty much laughing the whole time. I don’t hit too many home runs.”
The rally ended there, though, as Case was able to retire the side to win the game 14-13.
“We played a really good game,” Bamat said. “We just kept with them. It’d be nice to play them one more time.”

Sophomore Zach Pretzer started the game for Oberlin, giving up seven runs in two innings. He was relieved by Robert Smith, who pitched the remaining seven innings and gave up seven runs.
Senior Chris Irish led the way offensively, going four for four in the game with a walk and four runs scored. He is now batting .339, second on the team to Pretzer’s .341, and his OBP is approaching .550. DeWitt and first-year Mike Small both went three for five and junior Bob Montag was two for four.
Next in line for the Yeomen are three games at Wooster on Saturday, April 21 and Sunday, April 22. Wooster is 24-6 and is nationally ranked.