Late Show Plays Well for Eagles
March 26, 2003

In Ashland, OH, you’ve got to stay up late to catch David Letterman. Sometimes, it’s worth staying late to catch the Ashland University baseball team in the later innings, too.

Wednesday (Mar. 26) at Donges Field, the Eagles scored twice in the bottom of the ninth inning and once in the 10th to come from behind and down Ohio Dominican, 5-4. The non-conference win gives the Eagles a 15-7 record. AU has won five consecutive games.

In the bottom of the 10th, junior catcher Josh Gaub lined a single to left field. After senior designated hitter Brock Wiskochil struck out, senior infielder Chris Skibinski doubled to right center. That brought Gaub home with the winning run.

That spurt wouldn’t have been possible without some heroics in the bottom of the ninth inning. With one out, senior outfielder Adam Whetstone singled. Sophomore second baseman Adam Wilson doubled to left field to plate Whetstone and Wilson came home on a single by junior center fielder Brandon Cornell. Cornell was cleared to play earlier on Wednesday. He was hit in the eye by a fly ball last Saturday in a doubleheader with Findlay.

The victory went to senior righty Ryan Hartzell, who pitched a perfect 10th. Hartzell is 2-3. AU also got exceptional work from its starter, sophomore lefty Ryan Douglas. In six innings, he allowed two runs on three hits. He walked three and fanned three.

Righthanders Larame Woodruff and Nate Wright also worked on the hill for AU. Wright was very effective, going 1 2/3 scoreless innings. Woodruff was touched for two runs on two hits in 1 1/3 innings.

The loss went to righthander Chris Ofat. He took over in the ninth inning and was charged with three runs on five hits in 1 1/3 innings.

Gaub was the only AU player with two hits, he finished 2-4. Senior first baseman Butch Kaufman had a triple.

The Eagles will host Gannon in a four-game series this weekend (Mar. 29-30). The teams will play doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday. Action both days begins at noon.