Baseball Splits Pair of Games in Port Charlotte

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. – Defiance College saw its four-game win streak snapped in Thursday's opener, suffering a 4-3 setback to Wilmington before bouncing back to log a 9-7 victory against Medaille to split the twinbilling.

The Yellow Jackets plated a run in the top of the first against Wilmington, but the bats could not build a larger cushion and the Quakers bounced back with a run in the fifth and two in the sixth to take the 3-2 advantage.

The one-run Wilmington lead held into the ninth, when Zach Stallkamp roped a one-out double and eventually scored the tying run on an RBI single off the bat of Brent Kremer. The Jackets could not take the lead however, as they left the bases loaded in the ninth.

The Quakers capitalized on the missed opportunity and put their first three batters on base to start the bottom of the ninth, before a single to right field gave Wilmington the 4-3 win.

Brett Belew turned in a strong start for DC, yielding two earned runs on eight hits and one walk in his six innings. Andrew Habecker (0-1) pitched well in relief but took the look by allowing the winning run in his two innings.

Defiance bounced back in the second game of the afternoon, as the offense exploded for six runs through the first three innings to fuel the 9-7 victory for the Yellow Jackets against Medaille.

Despite the fast start, the key rally came in the seventh when DC bolstered its 7-2 lead with a pair of insurance tallies that proved to be the difference. Casey Kahsen started the rally be clearing the fence for a solo shot, before Stallkamp singled and later scored on an Alex Timofeev RBI safety.

The two seventh-inning tallies gave Defiance the 9-2 lead and allowed the Jackets to withstand a five-run eighth inning from Medaille. With DC clinging to the 9-7 lead, Todd O'Dell was summoned to work the ninth. The sophomore relief ace allowed a leadoff single but coaxed a ground ball that was turned into a double play and then retired the next hitter to preserve the two-run win and earn his third save of the season.

Tyler Gallant (1-0) pitched well for the Jackets in his first collegiate start, hurling five innings and retiring three Medaille hitters on strikes. Gallant allowed two earned runs on five hits and a trio of walks.

Defiance (5-2) will close its Florida trip on Friday, with a single game against Ohio Wesleyan (3-4) at 9:30 am.