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After just falling short at Eastern Kentucky University Tuesday, Miami University men's baseball team rebounded with a 14-6 thumping of the Turtles the very next day. Led by junior standout Jordan Petraitis and freshman Kyle Weldon, the 'Hawks used their bats to silence the competition.
Weldon's four-RBI performance was especially impressive coming as his first career start.
"I think everyone on the team was extremely disappointed in our performance (Tuesday)," Petraitis said. "We knew we were every bit as good as they were but we let it get away from us. Having a big conference series starting Friday, we knew we had to set the tone for bigger things."
After falling down 2-0 early in the first, the 'Hawks responded with a ferocious four-run inning to put themselves up by 4-2. A two-run single by Armitage and Weldon allowed for the 'Hawks to position starting pitcher Chase Stewart to shutdown the Eastern Kentucky offense, which he did without a hitch.
"Any time you can respond like that after going down early, it is huge for momentum," Petraitis said. "I think the whole team felt an emotional lift being able to respond right back."
In the third inning, the 'Hawks broke the game wide open with two outs in the inning. Kyle Weldon started off the rally, which led to four runs scored and was capped by a backbreaking, long double which brought in two by Petraitis. The 'Hawks finished the inning with a resounding 8-2 lead, giving confidence to the entire team's hitters and pitchers.
"Having such a strong lead so early was a big confidence booster," Petraitis said. "The whole team knows that when we hit and pitch the way we are capable of, we can beat anyone."
In the fourth inning, Eastern Kentucky was ready to respond. Senior catcher Joe Oliver ripped a grounder for what appeared to be a single. Petraitis stopped the ball and had the presence of mind to wheel around and use his powerful arm to gun the batter out. The play was a clear momentum killer to the Turtles.
"It was one of those things that you don't even think about," Petraitis said. "I just was trying to stop it and when I did instincts kicked in and the next think you know the batters out."
The defense was definitely a storyline of the game as the 'Hawks made five crucial errors in Tuesday's loss.
The 'Hawks went on to score six in fifth and only allowed four more runs the rest of the game, giving them an impressive 14-6 beatdown. Head coach Dan Simonds attributed much of the win however to defense like Petraitis's.
"We didn't do anything strategically different this game but we did not beat ourselves and I think that was really the main factor," Sominds said. "Last game, we had five errors and at some crucial moments. In the game tonight, we approached every inning knowing that each out we needed to compete our hardest and I think we really accomplished that. I know that can sound like a bit of a cliché but this team has been searching for consistency all season."
The 'Hawks face in-conference opponent Akron University Friday. The Zips have struggled with the stellar competition of the MAC as well this season, posting a 5-7 in-conference record. Miami hopes to take the momentum from this game to Akron and hopefully push ahead of Buffalo University in the standings.
"The players played much better (Wednesday)," Simonds said. "They hit to all fields and our bullpen was outstanding. We need to take that same approach to Akron and I don't see any reason why we shouldn't take the series."
