ORLANDO, Fla. – It was not only the Knights who were victimized by a disheartening defeat at the hands of Ohio State this weekend, as the Buckeyes came up with a clutch hit in the bottom of the ninth to steal victory from the Citadel, 5-4.
Ohio State set themselves up for victory with a fundamentally strong 2nd inning; scoring four runs all on the strength of singles and small ball. Pat Porter did the most damage, driving in two of those runs with a single to bring home runners from second and third base.
The Citadel was able to keep the game close after that, and tied the score with a three run 5th inning. As an offensive threat the team faded thereafter, and entered the bottom of the 9th with no wiggle room in the form of a tie game.
A hit batsman and two ensuing walks from obviously uncomfortable pitcher Skylar Hunter set the table for the walk off hit. Head Coach Fred Jordan kept the shaky hurler on the mound – proving to be the vital mistake. Hunter gave up the walk off hit to the next batter while attempting to find the strike zone.
Ohio State will fend off their undefeated streak in the UCF Tournament tomorrow at 10:00 am against the Oklahoma Sooners, who will be fresh off a night game with the Knights.
