ADA, Ohio — The Marietta College baseball team closed out its Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) slate with a doubleheader split at host Ohio Northern University Saturday (May 2). The Polar Bears rallied for a 6-5 win in the opener, while the Pioneers used a four-run 11th frame to secure the twinbill split with an 8-4 victory in game two.

Marietta moved its record to 24-12 overall and finished 12-6 in the OAC. The Etta Express have locked up either the second or third seed in next week's OAC Tournament, which will take place beginning Thursday (May 7) at top-seeded Heidelberg University after the Student Princes swept a doubleheader at John Carroll University on Saturday. Otterbein College joined Marietta, Heidelberg and John Carroll to complete the OAC Tournament field after splitting a twinbill at Mount Union College. Ohio Northern, who moved to 15-21 overall and 12-6 in the OAC, will host Otterbein on Sunday (May 3). The results of those games will determine the final three OAC Tournament seeds.

Marietta took advantage of an Ohio Northern miscue in both of its first two at-bats to take an early 4-0 lead. Senior Cameron Cimino (Boardman/Boardman) (Boardman) reached on an error with one out in the first inning. Junior Chris Beatty (Seven Fields, Pa./Hampton) (Seven Fields, Pa./Hampton) and sophomore Casey Levens (Dayton/Centerville) (Dayton/Centerville) followed with back-to-back base hits to load the bases. Senior Brennan Cribbins (Middleburg Heights/Midpark) (Middleburg Heights/Midpark) drew a two-out walk to force in Cimino. Sophomore Jordan Thompson (Quaker City/Buckeye Trail) then reached after being hit by a pitch to drive in Beatty.

In the second, junior Dan Jones (Lima/Shawnee) (Lima/Shawnee) opened the frame by reaching all of the way to third base on an error. Sophomore Britt Meador (Columbus/Worthington Kilbourne) (Columbus/Worthington Kilbourne) followed with a walk. Jones then scored on a passed ball, while Meador later crossed the plate on a sacrifice fly by Levens to make it 4-0.

Ohio Northern cracked the scoreboard with two runs on three hits against senior T.J. Knowlton (Greenwich/Mapleton) (Greenwich/Mapleton) in the third. Marietta plated its fifth run on a solo shot to right field by junior Matt DeSico (Euclid/Euclid) (Euclid) with one out in the fifth inning. It was DeSico's third home run of the season.

The Polar Bears fought back with a three-run sixth to knot the game at 5-5. Brett Katana led off with a home run. After two more runners reached base, senior Chris Stewart (Dublin/Dublin Coffman) (Dublin/Coffman) relieved Knowlton on the mound. Stewart retired the first batter that he faced, but Greg Gibbons followed with a two-run single with two outs to tie the game.

The Etta Express failed to score in the seventh, giving the Polar Bears a chance to win the game in their final at-bat. Ohio Northern did just that, as Matt Hampshire delivered a two-out, RBI single to give his squad a 6-5 victory. The Polar Bears used the hit-and-run to score the winning run all of the way from first base on a very close play at the plate.

Ohio Northern out hit Marietta 9-5 and overcame three errors. Five different players had a hit for the Pioneers, who made two errors in the loss.

Knowlton allowed five runs on six hits, walked one and fanned five in 5 1/3 innings of work. Stewart, who took the loss to fall to 4-2, gave up one run on three hits in 1 1/3 frames. Brian Hill earned the win after scattering five runs (one earned) on five hits. Hill (6-5) walked five and struck out 10.

Ohio Northern took the early lead in the second game by plating two runs on three hit against Marietta freshman Brian Gasser (New Philadelphia/Indian Valley) (New Philadelphia/Indian Valley) in the second inning.

A two-out, solo home run by Beatty, his ninth of the year, put Marietta on the scoreboard in the third. It remained 2-1 in favor of Ohio Northern until the seventh. Freshman Niko Stanislav (Olmsted Falls/Berea) (Olmsted Falls/Berea) drew a lead off walk and advanced to second on a wild pitch. He then raced across the plate with the tying run on a RBI single to right field by Beatty.

Two Pioneers reached on errors to start the eighth. Thompson, as he did in game one, loaded the bases after he was hit by a pitch. Freshman Tim Saunders (Alliance/Alliance) (Alliance) then delivered a sacrifice fly to drive in Cribbins with the go-ahead run and give Marietta a 3-2 advantage. The Etta Express, however, could not add to the lead as it stranded the bases loaded. Ohio Northern answered with a two-out run of its own against sophomore reliever Mark Williams (Fayetteville/Perry) (Fayetteville/Perry) in the bottom of the eighth to tie the game at 3-3. Neither team scored in the ninth, which sent the action into extra innings.

Marietta loaded the bases and scraped a run across after a one-out walk to Cimino in the top of the 10th. The Pioneers, however, left the bases loaded again and headed into the bottom of the frame with a 4-3 lead. That proved costly, as Ohio Northern tied the game at 4-4 after plating a two-out run on a wild pitch to again extend the game.

The Etta Express finally broke the game open in the 11th. Cribbins hit a one-out single up the middle and stole second base. Freshman Kyle Lindquist (Columbus/Worthington Kilbourne) (Columbus/Worthington Kilbourne) followed with a single to move Cribbins to third. Thompson then hit an infield single, which plated Cribbins and moved Lindquist to third. Saunders, the next hitter, replaced Lindquist on the bases with a fielder's choice, before Stanislav delivered a two-run single through the right side to give Marietta the 7-4 lead. Cimino added a RBI single to extend the advantage to 8-4.

Williams retired Ohio Northern in order in the bottom of the frame to secure the victory. The right-hander improved to 4-2 after scattering two runs on two hits and striking out seven over the final four innings. Gasser worked seven strong innings, allowing just two runs on eight hits. He walked one and struck out six in the no decision. Ben Stoll suffered the loss after giving up four runs on five hits in 1 2/3 innings.

The Etta Express produced 14 hits and overcame 16 stranded runners in the second game. Beatty and Thompson both led the way with three hits apiece, while Cimino, Cribbins and Saunders had two each in the win. Ohio Northern finished with 10 hits and made five errors in the loss.

Marietta is back in action on Monday (May 4) when it plays host to the University of Pittsburgh-Greensburg (Pa.) for a doubleheader at Don Schaly Stadium. First pitch is slated for 1 p.m. The Pioneers will then welcome Thiel (Pa.) College to Don Schaly Stadium on Tuesday for a single, nine-inning game at 4 p.m.