The Tiffin University baseball team fell in two extra inning affairs, falling 4-3 in 14 innings and 3-2 in 9 innings to the Malone University Pioneers.
Game One
The Pioneers jumped ahead in the 1st, scoring a run on a fielders choice. Elijah Sanabria got the Dragons on the board in the 3rd, pushing Kyle Lento home to tie the score at 1-1.
A run scoring double in the 4th and home run in the 6th allowed the Pioneers to take a 3-1 lead headed to the top of the 7th. TU made a push in the 7th, pulling within a run after Garrett Vernau's sacrifice fly pushed Andrew Hohman home. With two down and a man aboard, Kyle Lento lined a double into the left center field gap, scoring Devon Fisk to tie the game at 3-3.
The Dragons and Pioneers would then blank each other for the next six plus innings, before Malone broke through. A walk-off double to right center field put the final tally on the board, pushing Malone past the Dragons 4-3.
Patrick Bellinger took the loss, tossing 3 1/3 innings in relief. Isaac Perry reached base four times, collecting a pair of hits and two free passes.
Game Two
With both teams having already played the equivalent of a double header, the two sides suited up and took the field for another seven, plus, inning contest.
The two starting pitchers were stingy on the hill, taking a scoreless game into the 4th inning. In the top half of the 4th, Tiffin loaded the bases with two out. Brayden Callihan strolled to the plate, and smacked a 1-0 fastball back up the box to score a pair of Dragons.
Tiffin starting pitcher, Luke Fraley, carried his shutout into the 6th, but a double and single put runners at second and third with nobody down. Two sacrifice flies to center field allowed Malone to tie the game at 2-2.
So if one extra inning game wasn't enough, Malone and Tiffin played another. This game remained tied until the 9th inning. The Pioneers singled to lead off the inning. A sac bunt moved the runner 90-feet ahead, and another single scored the winning run for the Pioneers.
Brady Ward took the loss on the mound, hurling 2 2/3 innings in relief while striking out three. The Dragon offense sputtered throughout, stranding eight runners and punching out 11 times.
The two losses drop the Dragons to 15-23 overall and 6-14 in GLIAC play. The series will resume and conclude tomorrow with a twin bill.
