Trey Lipsey celebrates after hitting his two-run homer that put the Buckeyes ahead of the BG Falcons in the eighth inning. (Press Pros Feature Photos By Julie McMaken Wright)
Trey Lipsey’s two-run homer in the eighth inning pushed Ohio State past Bowling Green and made coach Bill Mosiello happy for his leadoff hitter.
Columbus, OH – Ohio State’s Trey Lipsey needed a big opportunity to prove to his coach he should stay in the leadoff spot. And almost like he’d planned it, Lipsey came to the plate Wednesday in the eighth inning with everything to gain.
Veteran columnist Jeff Gilbert writes Ohio State and OHSAA sports for Press Pros Magazine.com.
And, quite possibly, a lot to lose.
The score was tied, a teammate was on first base and the ultimatum of head coach Bill Mosiello was fresh in Lipsey’s mind. So was the memory of being benched for two games this past weekend. Then Lipsey, at least for this week, regained his spot in the batting order.
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He hit a fastball over the left-field fence for a two-run homer to complete a comeback in the Buckeyes’ 6-4 victory over Bowling Green at Bill Davis Stadium.
“It’s a big spot, and I just wanted to do my job and put a ball in play and hit it hard,” Lipsey said. “I was able to do that.”
Lipsey, who also doubled home a run in the Buckeyes’ three-run third inning, entered the game batting .219. He sat the final two games this past weekend at Nebraska, and Mosiello had a talk with his talented outfielder.
“I met with him and let him know how important he is to this club,” Mosiello said. “I said I’d given him 122 at-bats and these next two days are super important.”
Lipsey will have another chance Wednesday in another home game against Morehead State.
“He basically told me I gotta be tougher, and I just wanted to go into this game and be a tough out,” he said. “I’ve had coaches get on me my whole life. So this conversation wasn’t the first one I’ve ever had.”
Chase Herrell worked four innings, allowed one hit, walked three and struck out two.
Getting a nonconference victory was important, lifted the Buckeyes to 14-14 and came against the Mid-American Conference’s best team. Bowling Green (15-11) is 12-0 in the MAC and, at over nine runs a game, is the sixth-highest scoring team in the country.
“This one was huge,” Lipsey said. “We knew this was a big one for us, and we weren’t taking them lightly.”
The Buckeyes faced a 4-3 deficit in the eighth when Mitchell Okuley doubled on the first pitch. He went to third on a wild pitch and after Hank Thomas walked scored on Josh Stevenson’s fielder’s choice. Then Lipsey hit his fourth homer of the season.
“He’s been working hard, and he deserves to do well,” Mosiello said. “But like I’ve told him – he knows how much I like him, he knows how much I believe in him – I can’t just continue to let him play if there isn’t any production. It was sure awesome for him to come through like that. I wish it was that easy with everybody.”
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The game was easy for the Buckeyes for five innings. Lipsey’s double and Tyler Pettorini’s two-out, two-run double put the Buckeyes up 3-0 in the third.
Meanwhile, freshman Chase Herrell was cruising in his fourth start. He worked four innings, allowed one hit, walked three and struck out two. Herrell, a 6-foot-2 right-hander from Milford, has been solid in all but one appearance, a one-inning, five-run start against Arizona State. In his other eight appearances his ERA is 2.41.
Henry Kaczmar celebrating his double.
Herrell didn’t pitch the fifth because Mosiello will probably need him in relief in this weekend’s series against Iowa. He turned to senior Logan Jones, who was coming off two scoreless outings.
Jones retired the first five batters he faced, then walked the bases loaded with two out in the sixth. But it was the second strike he threw to freshman T.J. Takats that hurt him the most. Takats hit his first college home run for a grand slam and a 4-3 Falcons lead.
“You walk three guys in a row you get exactly what you deserve,” Mosiello said. “Feel sorry for the pitcher and feel sorry for our club. But one inning never beats a club.”
With two midweek games and three this weekend, Mosiello couldn’t afford for Jones not to finish the inning.
Matthew Graveline tags a BG runner out at home.
Before Lipsey’s big moment, another freshman, Zach Brown (3-0), had to extricate himself from a jam in the top of the eighth. A single, a walk and a double steal brought the infield in with no outs. Fortunately for Brown, his sinker was sinking, and the Falcons couldn’t hit it well.
A ground ball to shortstop Henry Kaczmar took care of the first out. Then an intentional walk loaded the bases. That brought Tyler Ross, an Olentangy Orange graduate, to the plate with his .359 batting average. But the sinker forced BG’s hand and Ross bunted. Brown came off the mound, leaned on his second-base experience as a high schooler, and fired to the plate for the second out. Then a routine fly ball ended the threat.
And Lipsey and the Buckeyes got their chance.
“We never lose belief,” Lipsey said. “We always think in the back of our reminds we can pull it out.”
Closing pitcher Justin Eckhardt (who got his fifth save) and Matthew Graveline celebrate after Justin strikes out the last batter of the night.
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