Baseball Holds Off Mitchell (Conn.) to Remain Unbeaten

FT. MYERS, FLA.  --  Junior Ryan Kohlhofer (Walbridge/Lake) went five-of-six at the plate with two runs scored and two RBI to help keep the Defiance College baseball team undefeated with a 12-10 win against fellow unbeaten Mitchell (Conn.) College in a single nine-inning game in Ft. Myers, Fla.

The two teams combined for 38 hits with Defiance recording 23 of those hits.  Senior Matt Staels (Harrison Twp., Mich./L'Anse Creuse) had a four-of-five showing at the plate in addition to scoring two runs and a RBI.  Junior Ben Weber (Troy/Lehman Catholic) and senior Joel Musser (Center Line, Mich./Center Line) both finished with three hits with Weber going a perfect three-of-three and Musser three-of-five.  Weber also scored a run and had three RBI, while Musser scored a pair of runs and drove in another. 

Rounding out the multi-hitters were senior Chris Donese (Kettering/Fairmont), junior Gary Levengood (Beverly Hills, Fla./Lecanto) and sophomore Zack Reed (Midland, Mich./Bullock Creek).  Donese recorded two hits in six at-bats and had a RBI.  Levengood was two-of-four with two runs scored and Reed was two-of-five with two runs scored and a RBI.

Mitchell (8-1) looked to move into the diver's seat scoring four runs in the top of the second inning, but the Defiance (5-0) offense responded in a big way in the bottom half of the frame crossing the plate seven times that included several RBI-base hits including a two-run single by Weber.  Sophomore Quinten Harrington (Sandusky/Perkins) and Reed both had RBI-doubles, while Musser and Staels joined Weber with RBI-singles.  The Yellow Jackets went on to add two more runs in the third thanks to a RBI-double by Kohlhofer and a RBI-base hit by Weber and then another run in the fourth off of another RBI-knock by Kolhofer that made the score 10-4 after four innings of play.

The Mariners got one run back in the top of the fifth, but DC answered again matching the run with a score of its own in the sixth when Donese found open space in the defense that allowed Reed to score extending the margin back to six runs, 11-5.  The Jackets recorded their final run in the seventh on a RBI bunt by Harrington with runners on first and third making the score 12-5.  Mitchell wouldn't go away, however, as the Mariners scored a run in the eighth and then got four runs home in the top of the ninth, despite beginning the inning with back-to-back outs, to cut the deficit to 12-10.  DC's Chris Douglas (Wixom, Mich./Walled Lake Western) then came on to pitch and closed out the inning with a groundout sealing the victory for the Yellow Jackets.

Freshman Cody Nelson (Clayton, Mich./Hudson) started the game for Defiance on the mound and pitched four innings allowing five runs, four earned, on eight hits.  Sophomore Nick Watkins (Lima/Central Catholic) came on to pitch four innings in relief and ended up as the pitcher of record to claim his first win of the season.  In four innings, he gave up five runs, one earned, on six hits and struck out two batters.  Douglas was credited with his first save of the year pitching a third of an inning.

Defiance will wrap-up its Florida trip tomorrow (Friday, Mar. 13) with a pair of games beginning with a matchup against Salve Regina (R.I.) University at 9 a.m., followed by a game against North Park (Ill.) University at noon.