Bucks emerge from stormy weekend with wins
By Joshua Lehman
After battling the Illinois Fighting Illini — and the stormy weather — the Ohio State Buckeye baseball team concluded their home Big Ten schedule and emerged with a 2-1 series win.
The scheduled game four was cancelled on Sunday due to rain and tornado warnings. Friday night, the Buckeyes trailed 7-2 going into the seventh inning stretch before the conclusion was postponed due to weather. All of the weekend’s action took place Saturday afternoon.
After finishing the first game, a 9-4 loss, OSU swept the scheduled Saturday double-header by scores of 9-2 and 14-8. It was the first double-header sweep of the season for the Buckeyes.
But it was hardly smooth sailing. After cruising to a win in the first game, the normally staunch Dean Wolosianski allowed eight runs in only four innings, and the Buckeyes entered the middle of the fifth staring at an 8-3 deficit.
The first six batters reached base in the bottom half of the fifth, and some big two-out hitting, including a two-RBI triple by Cory Rupert, led the Bucks to a 10-run inning. It was the highest scoring inning for OSU since a 14-run first inning against Penn State in 2005.
Living the high life
First baseman Justin “Gus” Miller continues to lead the way for the OSU attack. Miller ran his hitting streak to nine games.
Miller, the team captain, has 15 RBI and is batting .486 (17-for-35) during the streak. Overall, his season average is .389.
Remembering Marty
Hall of fame former Buckeye coach Marty Karow had his number retired Saturday by the team. Karow graduated from OSU in 1927, and returned as head coach in 1951.
In 25 seasons, Karow’s teams won over 58 percent of their games, and he led the scarlet and gray to its only National Championship in 1966. In his final game as Buckeye coach, OSU defeated arch-rival Michigan 1-0 in Columbus.
Karow’s No. 13 is only the third number retired by OSU baseball, joining Fred Taylor’s (27) and Steve Arlin’s (22). He died in 1986, but a slew of former players were on hand to accept the honor for their former coach.
Dan’s the man
Senior Dan DeLucia has struggled some this season with injuries, but he went out on top Saturday, winning his final collegiate home start in game one of the Saturday double-header.
DeLucia threw 5.1 and allowed two runs in the 9-2 OSU win and ran his season record to 2-3. The lefty is the only three-time captain in OSU history.
With only one game remaining in his regular season, DeLucia has compiled a career record of 23-13 in his time at OSU. In 2006, he posted a 10-2 record, the only 10-win season for OSU since 1999. Throughout his career, he’s been at his best when the stakes are highest. DeLucia has a 3-0 record and 2.42 ERA in five career post-season starts.
On deck
Ohio State stands at 27-22 (13-13 Big Ten) as of press time, with Tuesday’s home game against Buffalo not included. The Buckeyes have never won less than 32 games under Bob Todd, but need to sweep their remaining games to reach that mark.
There’s a ray of hope, though. OSU’s final opponent is the Iowa Hawkeyes. At 20-31, including an 8-20 conference record, Iowa stands in dead last in the Big Ten.
Originally Published: Issue 648 - May 14, 2008
 |
Share on Facebook |
