Inconsistency plagued the Oakland Golden Grizzlies baseball team (9-21, 5-7 Horizon) this weekend, as costly innings sealed their fate in a series loss to the Milwaukee Panthers at the Oakland Baseball Field.
The series loss leaves Oakland tied with Milwaukee for third place in the Horizon League standings, trailing Wright State and Northern Kentucky while remaining ahead of Youngstown State.
Game 1: Milwaukee 12, Oakland 4
Milwaukee set the tone early in the series opener, capitalizing on timely hitting and Oakland miscues to build momentum that the Golden Grizzlies struggled to regain.
With one runner on, Panthers’ Dominic Kibler connected for an RBI double to put Milwaukee up. Bradyn Horn followed up Kibler’s double with a single, allowing Kibler to score, giving the Panthers an early 2-0 advantage.
Oakland struck back in the bottom of the first, courtesy of a Kyle Revere solo home run to right field. Although the Golden Grizzlies couldn’t capitalize on the momentum from Revere’s home run, Oakland cut the deficit to 2-1.
Come the fourth inning, the Golden Grizzlies took their first lead of the game. After Tony Konopiots reached on a fielder’s choice, Lucas Day was walked, leaving two men on. Carter Hain extended the effort with a long double to bring both runners in, putting Oakland up 3-2.
Milwaukee had a response in the following inning, as a string of walks and a hit batter allowed Milwaukee to tie the game while loading the bases. With a full house, Dylan O’Connell delivered an RBI double before a wild pitch let in another Milwaukee run, putting the Panthers ahead 6-3.
Back in the driver’s seat, the Panthers extended their lead in the sixth inning thanks to a Charlie Marion solo home run to right field, pushing the score to 7-3.
Although a Ben Clark home run inched the Golden Grizzlies closer to the Panthers’ lead in the bottom of the seventh, making it a 7-4 ball game, the Milwaukee bats came alive in the eighth inning, as all nine batters came to the plate to give the Panthers a dominant 12-4 lead over Oakland.
With two innings left for the Golden Grizzlies to respond, Panthers’ pitcher Alex Vander Loop closed the door on any comeback, allowing just one hit through the final two innings as Milwaukee came away winners of the series opener.
Game 2: Milwaukee 5, Oakland 6
Oakland struck first in game two, as a Milwaukee fielding error allowed Clark to score. With two runners on, a Sam Patton single brought in a run before Sam Griffith pulled off an impressive sacrifice bunt to score another run, putting the Golden Grizzlies up 3-0.
In the following inning, Oakland added to their tally. Hain got the frame started with a single and was able to advance to second on a Clark groundout. The Golden Grizzlies’ next batter, Revere, lined one to left field, bringing home Hain to widen the margin to 4-0.
Milwaukee’s first run of the game came in the fourth inning, as Grant Ross singled to right-center before advancing to second after O’Connell hit into a groundout. Ross made it home on the Panthers’ next at-bat thanks to an RBI single from Kibler to make it 4-1.
Finally, on the scoreboard, the Panthers clawed back in the fifth inning after Charlie Marion started the frame with a double. Milwaukee strung together a series of small-ball plays and an Oakland error to jump ahead 5-4.
Despite the pushback from Milwaukee, the Golden Grizzlies answered in the bottom of the frame. Konopiots set the tone with a single before Patton followed up with a double to left center, putting runners on second and third with no outs. Griffith came up to the plate next and grounded out into a double play. Still, Konopiots scored the game-tying run, making it a 5-5 ball game.
After a fruitless inning from Oakland in the sixth inning, Aidan Orr led off the seventh frame with a walk and advanced to third on a throwing error and a groundout. With Griffith up to bat, he delivered the game–winning run with an RBI single to give Oakland back the lead at 6-5.
Similar to the first game of the series, the trailing team, this time the Panthers, had two innings to mount a rally. Luckily for the Golden Grizzlies, utility player Blake Sehlke had a flawless final two innings, striking out one and allowing no hits to earn his first collegiate save, making Oakland the winners of game two.
Game 3: Milwaukee 12, Oakland 0
The series finale quickly turned into a one-sided affair, as Milwaukee delivered a dominant showing.
The Panthers set the tone immediately in the opening frame, manufacturing a run without a hit as O’Connell worked his way around the bases, stealing second and third before swiping home to give Milwaukee an early 1-0 lead.
From there, Oakland struggled to contain Milwaukee’s momentum. The Panthers also capitalized on some Oakland defensive miscues, adding three runs in the fourth inning to create a cushion of separation.
Any chance of a Golden Grizzly comeback was essentially erased in the following inning, when Milwaukee broke the game open. Horn and Max Glusick highlighted the inning with a pair of home runs while Kibler added to the score with a two-RBI double, extending the Panther lead to double digits.
Faced with a mountain of a deficit, the Golden Grizzlies were unable to generate any offensive response in the seventh and final inning, which saw Milwaukee add two more runs to close out the game with a mercy rule, clinching the series in the process.
On Deck
Up next, the Golden Grizzlies have the opportunity to regain momentum as they travel to Michigan State to take on the Spartans this upcoming Tuesday, April 14, before coming back home for a matchup against the Cleary Cougars the following day on Wednesday, April 15.
Analyzing Michigan State, they hold a 12-21 record with a 6-12 conference record. While the Spartans have a series win over nationally ranked Louisville, they’re coming off a series loss to Michigan ahead of their matchup with the Golden Grizzlies.
Looking at Cleary, they’ve posted a 21-15 overall record and an 11-7 conference record so far this season. Ahead of their game against Oakland, the Cougars will take on Lawrence Tech in a doubleheader.
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