ASHLAND, Ohio - Despite hanging tough with the home team, the Dragons lost a trio of games on Thursday afternoon (April 21) as Tiffin (8-28, 5-17 GLIAC) fell to Ashland (24-12, 13-8) 8-4, 3-1 and 5-2.
Jordan Chiero had three hits in nine at-bats with a run scored and an RBI. Michael Dushane went 2-for-9 with a pair of RBI's and a run scored. Connor Wendt took the loss and fell to 0-4, giving up eight runs (seven earned) on 14 hits in game one. Tony Naso was the hard-luck losing pitcher in game two, giving up three runs (two earned) on seven hits to fall to 1-4. Chris Sauber made his first collegiate start in game three, giving up two runs on six hits for a no-decision.
Matt McAllster was scorching at the plate for Ashland, knocking six hits (two doubles) in nine at-bats with four runs scored and an RBI. Evan Melandez went 5-12 with four RBI's.
Because of the postponed first game after one inning in March, Brad Thomas (4-4) started two of three games of the tripleheader, earning the win in the second contest, allowing only one unearned run in six hits. Cole Hudson (2-0) got the win in the first game, relieving Thomas and allowing four runs on seven hits. Eric Vaughn threw a complete game, five-hitter for the win in game three to improve to 4-2.
In the postponed game in March, Ashland scored a pair in the top of the first on a groundout and RBI single by Tyler Gray, but Dushane kept the damage at two when he threw home from centerfield to gun down an Eagle runner to end the first. Both teams went scoreless in the second and third before Ashland exploded for two more in the top of the fourth thanks to a Melendez two RBI single and Austin Erb's RBI hit. Ashland added another in the fifth before Tiffin struck for four in the bottom of the fifth. With one out, Cory Hornyak and Pat Curtin singled before a Dushane double scored the first TU run. Cory Osborne followed with a two-RBI single and Chiero singled in the final Tiffin run.
Ashland added a pair of insurance runs in the top of the seventh to secure the 8-4 win.
In game two, the Eagle pitchers kept the Dragons off balance in a 3-1 win. RBI singles by Gray and Ethan Reese put Ashland up 2-0 after two, but Tiffin cut the deficit in half in the top of the fifth with a two-out hit by Dushane. The Eagles added one in the bottom of the sixth to finish off the two-run win.
Tiffin took a 2-0 lead in the top of the fourth in game three, but Ashland scored five unanswered to win the game 5-2. With two outs and a runner at first, Chiero was hit by a pitch to put two on for Val Helldobler. Helldobler hit a two RBI single and Chiero stole home to give TU a two-run lead.
Ashland cut the deficit in half in the bottom of the inning before taking the lead for good with a pair of runs in the fifth. With one out, Gray doubled and advanced to third on Avery's single off new TU pitcher Brock Mitchell. Mitchell got an infield fly for the second out, but Avery stole second, Melendez scored on a two-out hit and Gray scored what proved to be the winning run on a throwing error.
The home team added a pair of runs in the bottom of the sixth again for the 5-2 win.
Tiffin returns to action for a doubleheader tomorrow at 2 p.m. in Hillsdale, Mich.
