GAMBIER, Ohio (April 6, 2024) – The No. 3 nationally-ranked Denison University baseball team traveled to nearby Kenyon College on Saturday and was shutout through seven innings in game one before scoring twice in the top of the eighth to tie it and pushing across the winning run with a walk in the top of the ninth to earn a 3-2 victory. Then in game two, the Big Red scored seven runs in the first two innings and won 10-2 to improve to 21-2 overall and 4-0 in the North Coast Athletic Conference.
 
Game 1 (No. 3 Denison 3, Kenyon 2):

• With the wind blowing in, it took until the fifth inning for someone to get on the scoreboard as a bunt single by Gio Giuliano and a wild pitch helped Kenyon get a runner into scoring position in the bottom of the fifth. That was followed by a walk to put two runners on base with one out before an RBI-double to right center field by Drew Robinson and a sacrifice fly to right field by Malcolm Gaynor to make it a 2-0 Owls lead.
• Meanwhile, Kenyon's starting pitcher, Theo Canning, limited the Big Red to just three hits and three walks while tossing seven shutout innings.
• For Denison, Will Rettig allowed six hits, two runs, three walks and six strikeouts in his six innings.
• Kenyon threated to add to its lead after loading the bases with nobody out in the bottom of the seventh, but Ryan Starr was able to get back-to-back swinging strikeouts followed by a fielder's choice to shortstop to get out of the jam and keep it at a two-run game.
• That left the door open for Denison, which started off the top of the eighth inning with back-to-back walks by Jake Blozy and Jack Lutte. A single to left field by Eric Colaco loaded the bases and set the stage for an RBI-groundout to shortstop by Jake Welsch and a sacrifice fly to right field by Cade Nowik to tie it.
• In the bottom of the eighth, Kenyon loaded the bases with two outs, but George Viebrock (3-0) was able to get out of it thanks to a diving catch in left field by Colaco.
• With two outs and nobody on in the top of the ninth, Blozy again started the rally for the Big Red with a single to right field before stealing second base. That led to intentional walks to both Colin Ravin and Colaco to load the bases for Welsch, who drew a five-pitch walk against Noah Rosenberg to score his second RBI of the day and give Denison its first lead of the day. It was also Blozy's second run scored during game one.
• Facing the 2-3-4 portion of the Kenyon lineup in the bottom of the ninth, Viebrock got a strikeout and back-to-back flyouts to end it.
• Viebrock finished with two innings pitched allowing one hit, no runs, one walk and three strikeouts to earn the win and help Denison keep its winning streak alive.

 
Game 2 (No. 3 Denison 10, Kenyon 2):

• Denison scored four runs with two outs in the top of the first inning as after a leadoff single up the middle by Owen Wilson, the Big Red got four stright two-out hits by Nowik on an RBI-single to right center, Max Fishbein on a double to left center, Ravin on a two-run single through the right side and Jack Steel on an RBI-double to right center.
• Kenyon tried to answer with two quick runs against Peter Lemke in the bottom of the first as a leadoff double to right center was followed by a single back to Lemke and later an errant throw by Lemke on a pickoff attempt at first base to score the first run.
• The second Kenyon run came in on another grounder back to Lemke for the first out of the inning, but after a walk and a single was followed by a double that saw a Kenyon runner thrown out a home 9-4-2 for out number two, another walk loaded the bases and chased Lemke.
• That brought in Robbie Lee (4-1) to pitch, and Lee responded by getting a groundout to third base to leave the bases loaded.
• For the second inning in a row, Wilson led off and got on base, this time with a walk, before scoring with two outs, this time on a two-run single to right center by Ravin. Steel followed with a single through the left side to score Fishbein and make it 7-2 Big Red. In the end, Denison sent nine batters to the plate for the second straight inning.
• Lee pitched a 1-2-3 bottom of the third inning ending with back-to-back strikeouts and then struck out the side in the bottom of the fourth.
• Denison added to its lead in the top of the fifth as Colaco hit a one-out single up the middle, stole second base, advanced to third on a single through the left side by Welsch, and then scored on an RBI-single down the left field line by Nowik. Two batters later, Welsch came home on a sacrifice fly to right field by Ravin.
• Lee pitched another 1-2-3 inning with two strikeouts in the sixth inning before Nate Dinges came in with two outs in the seventh inning and ultimately left the bases loaded.
• Dinges then got a 6-4-3 double play for the first two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning before Manny Nager pitched a 1-2-3 bottom of the ninth.
• Lee finished with six innings pitched allowing four hits, no runs, no walks and eight strikeouts while he, Dinges and Nager combined to keep Kenyon off the scoreboard for the final 8.1 innings.
• Offensively for Denison, Ravin finished 3-for-5 with five RBI's and two runs scored while Fishbein was 2-for-3 with three walks and two runs.
• Lastly, both Nowik and Steel recorded a pair of RBI-hits.

Next Up: The home doubleheader against Ohio Wesleyan University, rescheduled for last Tuesday, April 2, will now be played starting at 12 p.m. on Tuesday, April 9, in Granville, Ohio.