Sports
Ohio Faces Four-Game Series With Longwood To End Road Trip
By: Eric Singer
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On Friday afternoon, the Ohio Bobcats begin the last series of their month-long road trip throughout the southeastern United States, as the team travels to Farmville, Va., for a four-game set with the Longwood Lancers.
Longwood comes into the series with Ohio with a 5-8 overall record, and have lost three straight and five of their last six games. The Lancers’ offense has given the team stability thus far, scoring 72 runs (5.5 per game) and boasting a .269 team average, which includes four guys hitting above .300.
What has led the Lancers to the recent struggles has been the pitching staff, predominately the bullpen. The staff has given up 24 runs during the Lancers’ three-game losing streak, including giving up 16 runs with eight different pitchers in a game against North Carolina Central.
On the Ohio side, the Bobcats have had some extra time to recover from the 20-5 defeat they took at the hands of Georgia Southern on Sunday, as their game with UNC-Greensboro that was scheduled for Tuesday was canceled due to inclement weather in the area.
The Bobcats (3-6) began the series at Georgia Southern on the right foot, winning the Friday night matchup 3-2 over the Eagles, but the pitching staff fell apart over the next two games, and have given up 26 runs over the last 11 innings of play, going back to the six-run eighth inning by Southern Illinois-Edwardsville on Saturday afternoon.
Ohio’s offense is still led by freshman Mitch Longo (.486) and senior Scott White (.379), who have combined for nine runs scored, seven doubles, and 13 RBIs. Longo did have his eight-game hitting streak snapped when he went 0-3 on Sunday against Georgia Southern.
The Friday matchup is set to begin at 3 p.m., with the doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m. and game two beginning around 4 p.m. The series finale on Sunday is set for 1 p.m.
Probable Pitchers
Friday: Jake Roehn (1-1, 4.72 ERA) vs. Brandon Vick (0-1, 2.29 ERA)
Saturday: Connor Sitz (0-2, 4.05 ERA) vs. Aaron Myers (2-0, 2.35 ERA)
Saturday: Gerry Salisbury (0-2, 9.00 ERA) vs. Blake Ream (0-3, 10.64 ERA)
Sunday: Jake Miller (0-0, 7.36 ERA) vs. Allen Ellis (1-0, 3.18 ERA)