Game One Box l Game Two Box

Chandler, AZ – The Oberlin College baseball team started their spring break trip with a doubleheader split against Gustavus Adolphus on Saturday afternoon at Snedigar Park in Chandler, Arizona. After dropping game one 7-1, the Yeomen bounced back to take game two 8-5.

Oberlin was led by junior Zach Jaspers as he went 5-for-7 on the day with a double and a triple. Rookie Jeff Schweighoffer also went 4-for-6 in the twinbill.

In the nightcap, junior Kevin Swanson got his second win of the season as he scattered six hits, while allowing just two earned runs. Sophomore side-arm specialist Mike McDonald worked the sixth and seventh to earn his first save of the season.

The Gusties scored one in the home-half of the first inning, but Oberlin responded with two of its own in the second. Ben Whitener started the rally with a single up the middle and would later score on Steve DiNanno's single to the gap in right center. Sophomore Ethan Blumenthal provided the second run of the frame with a sac fly to right.

With single tallies and the second and third, Gustavus reclaimed a 3-2 lead, but the Yeomen would respond with another pair of runs in the fifth. Jaspers led off the inning with a triple down the right field line and scored on a sac fly by Sean Cohen. Junior Eric Knight would then follow with his second home run of the season with a shot that sailed over the wall in left center to make it a 4-3 Yeomen advantage.

Oberlin would add an unearned run in the sixth and three in the seventh to put the game away for good. The big play in the seventh was a suicide squeeze bunt by Mattie DeDoes that scored two runs on play. Zach Kisley, who was on second at the time of the pitch, got a huge jump and never stopped running as rounded third and headed for home.

The lid-lifter shaped up to be a pitcher's duel through five innings as Jason James and Grant Soderberg went toe-to-toe on the bump. Unfortunately, James ended up being the tough-luck loser after working 5.1 innings and allowing just two earned runs.

The Gusties were clinging to a 1-0 lead until the bottom of the fifth inning when the Yeomen manufactured a run to tie the game. A lead-off double by Jaspers got things going and he was then sacrificed over to third before scoring on a ground out by Cohen.

Unfortunately things took a turn for the worse in the sixth as the Gusties used four hits and two Oberlin errors to plate six runs in the frame en route to earning the win.

The Yeomen, who matched a season-high with 14 hits in game two, will take on Williams College tomorrow at 12 p.m. MST/3 p.m. EST.