Baseball Dismantles Rochester Christian in Sunday Doubleheader

UTICA, MI - UNOH baseball held on to their two-game lead in the WHAC standings with a pair of comfortable victories at Rochester Christian on Sunday. The Racers had to dig out a hole in both games but used twelve extra base hits that included five home runs to run away 16-8 in game one and 23-4 in game two. 

The Warriors plated three times in their first at bat of the day but gave the lead right back in the top of the second after four walks, two wild pitches, a hit batter, an error and a single scored four for UNOH. The Racers added another with a sac fly in the third but Rochester jumped right back in front with another three-run frame in the fourth that put them up 7-5. 

Fabian Romero hit a lead off single to left in the sixth that started the wheels in motion for what would become a massive inning for the Racers. It took just three hits to score eight runs thanks to four more walks and another hit batter. The scoring was not done, however, as UNOH worked two runners on with two outs in the seventh before Casey Barnes smacked a three run homer to blow the game open and finish off the first of two wins.

Eight different Racers took the bump in game one with Noah Curi working the longest tenure at two full innings. Josh Mauney (3-0) earned the relief decision as the man in charge when the score changed hands a final time in the top of the sixth inning. Mauney went an inning and a third without a hit striking out three of four batters faced. 

Game two began in a similar fashion to game one but resulted in a four-run deficit after the Warriors put up three in the first and one in the second. It would be their final offense of the game, though, as UNOH hurler Sinjon Bobolia settled in and took control without allowing a single runner past first base over the final five innings of the game. The Racer offense took three innings to find their groove but once they did it was an impressive showcase that began and ended with a grand slam. 

Casey Barnes was responsible for the first, giving him two this season, and was quickly followed by Jake Watson who ripped a solo shot of his own on the very next pitch. Cesar Grau off a six-run inning with the Racers leading 6-4 after four. With the offense flowing, UNOH turned five more hits into five more runs in the fifth as they began to pull away. Four hits plated another four in the sixth and made it a 15-4 game and gave the Racers a chance to end the game early in seven.

UNOH took the opportunity and ran with it notching their second 8-run frame of the day guarenteed an early run-rule finish. Tyler Huff got into the long ball game with his fourth home run of the year to start things rolling again with a RBI fielder's and a bases-loaded walk bringing in two more. The scoring ended the same way it began as Loagan Stickler launched the team's second grand slam of the game in just his fifth at bat of the season giving his team their fourth granny in the last seven days.

Sinjon Bobolia (5-2) worked through his early struggles to churn out an impressive performance for first complete game of the season. After facing twelve batters in the first two innings, Bobolia worked the minimum of 15 through the final five frames finishing with four runs on six hits striking out six and walking three. 

Casey Barnes drove in a team high seven RBI over the two games going 3-5 with two home runs and six runs scored. Fabian Romero had the team's most efficient day at the plate hitting 6-9 with six RBI and scoring six times himself. Tyler Huff and Jake Watson both went 4-8 in the doubleheader with each logging a double and a home run for six combined RBI.

The Racers finished with 39 runs and 38 RBI on the day moving them into tenth in the country in both categories with 391 and 356, respectively. They also sit in the top 15 nationally in batting average (.339), on base percentage (.452), Hits (436), and triples (15) as they continue to dismantle their conference competition.

Weather pending, UNOH will take a brief respite from WHAC play with a single, nine-inning contest against Saint Francis (IN) on Wednesday, April 15. They will get back into league play against the team currently sitting third in the standings, Madonna (30-12, 13-7), who will host the Racers for a doubleheader on April 18.