Baseball drops doubleheader against John Carroll

The Muskingum baseball team dropped game one of its doubleheader against John Carroll on Saturday, 10-3. In game two, the Muskies fell to the Blue Streaks, 9-5.

• Records: Muskingum (6-16 overall, 1-5 OAC), John Carroll (17-6 overall, 6-0 OAC)
• Location: New Concord, Ohio

John Carroll jumped out to an early lead after scoring six runs in its first two at-bats.

In the bottom of the second inning, junior Holden Martin singled up the middle to drive in two runs and make it 6-2.

The Blue Streaks extended their lead to 8-2 in the top of the fourth by scoring two runs.

Muskingum answered in the bottom of the fourth when freshman Sam Pinckert blasted an RBI single. However, the Blue Streaks put up two more runs in the top of the sixth and rode their momentum to a victory in game one.

Freshman Jake Norris took the loss for Muskingum on the mound. Norris pitched 8.0 innings and allowed 10 runs on 11 hits while striking out five batters. Pitcher Duncan Cappar earned the win for John Carroll. Cappar pitched 6.0 innings and allowed three runs on five hits while notching one strikeout. John Merrill earned his first save at the mound for John Carroll. Merrill pitched 3.0 innings and allowed no runs on one hit.  

Junior Holden Martin led the Muskies with two hits and two RBIs. Patrick Keohane guided the Blue Streaks with three runs on two hits and two RBIs. 

John Carroll took a quick 3-0 lead after the first two innings of play.

Muskingum retaliated in the bottom of the third inning when Carson hit an RBI single to right field. Then, Pinckert stole home to make it 3-2.

Over the next two innings, the Blue Streaks heated up and scored five runs, increasing their advantage to 8-2.

Carson singled to center field, bringing in two runs for the Muskies in the bottom of the seventh.

In the top of the ninth, the Blue Streaks scored one run to push their lead to 9-4. Then, the Muskies brought in a run to make it 9-5 in the bottom of the ninth. However, John Carroll's defense held Muskingum to one run on one hit with three runners left on base as it tallied its second win of the day.

Freshman Craig Nixon took the loss for Muskingum. Nixon pitched 4.0 innings and allowed eight runs on nine hits. Nathaniel Wenson secured the win for the Blue Streaks. He allowed four runs on eight hits in 7.0 innings of work. 

Freshman Brett Carson led the Muskies at the plate with two hits and three RBIs. Justin Hanley guided the Blue Streaks with one run on one hit and four RBIs. 

The Muskies next play at Capital on Tuesday, April 9. Game one of the slated Ohio Athletic Conference doubleheader is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.