LAKE MYRTLE, Fl. – The Trine University baseball team came up short in a come-from-behind effort on Monday afternoon 9-7 to Dominican University on the team's spring break trip.
The Thunder (2-4) plated four runs in the top of the eighth, but it was not enough to catch up to the Stars (3-3) who had already gotten out to a six-run advantage.
Trine had traffic on the basepaths in the first inning via an Easton Rhodes [Auburn, Ind. / DeKalb] walk and Cory Erbskorn [Archbold, Ohio / Archbold] reaching on an error, but came up empty in the frame. The bottom half would start good for the Thunder with a double play turned on a lineout on the infield, but back-to-back doubles would sent home a run.
A baserunning miscue would thwart another chance with a runner in scoring position in the second, while Dominican tacked on another run to go up 2-0 after two.
Pitcher Kade Keele [Fort Wayne, Ind. / New Haven] settled in with a 1-2-3 inning in the third, two of which coming on strikeouts. Unfortunately, a crooked number in the fourth would end his day on the mound prematurely. The Stars put up a five-spot to take a 7-0 lead and chase Keele from the game after 3.1 innings.
In the top of the sixth, the Thunder would be able to string together some base hits and score three. Another Rhodes walk started the rally, and Dalton Nikirk [Bedford, Ind. / Bedford North Lawrence] moved him over with a base hit. Brenden Warner [Richland, Mich. / Hackett Catholic Prep] loaded the bases with a single of his own, and the clean-up man Erbskorn sent a double into the outfield to score two. Pinch hitter Jack Kletzly [Lebanon, Ohio / Lebanon] brought home a third run with a groundball up the middle.
Reliever Jeff Ballard [Munster, Ind. / Munster] threw three innings and surrendered two runs as Trine trailed 9-3 heading into the later innings. Nikirk would be the spark to another big inning offensively. His leadoff single would be the catalyst for a four-run eighth.
Consecutive hits by Erbskorn and Kletzly allowed Nikirk to cross the plate, the second RBI of the day for the pinch hitter. Adam Stefanelli [Westerville, Ohio / Westerville North] made it three consecutive hits with an RBI single himself to cut the deficit to 9-5. Later in the inning, Matt Weis [Trenton, Ill. / Triad] batted a ball into the gap for a two-run double and was the game's tying run in scoring position with one out. A strikeout followed by a line drive back at the pitcher would result in two being left on base.
Nikirk notched his team-high third hit of the day to lead off the ninth, and the tying run in Warner followed him with a single, but the Thunder did not have enough juice to bring them in and fell 9-7.
Robert Kortas [New Baltimore, Mich. / Anchor Bay] finished the game on the mound and threw 1.2 innings of scoreless baseball. He allowed one hit and one walk and sat down two hitters on strikes.
Trine looks to get back in the win column on Tuesday, March 8 when the Thunder play King's College at 10:30 am.