Box Score
All-Tournament Team

MARIETTA, Ohio - The John Carroll University Blue Streaks made history Saturday evening (May 11) at Don Schaly Stadium. The Blue Streaks captured their first ever Ohio Athletic Conference crown with a 6-3 tournament win over Baldwin Wallace University.

"The kids earned it." John Carroll head coach Marc Thibeault said. "They battled for it. The created their opportunities and being able to do it at my alma mater is very special."

John Carroll (24-15 overall) would have to be beaten twice by the Yellow Jackets Saturday because the OAC Tournament is a double elimination format.

John Carroll reached the Championship Game by defeating Heidelberg University on Thursday, Marietta College on Friday before falling to Baldwin Wallace (25-18 overall) early on Saturday in the first game of two.  

Baldwin Wallace dropped their first game of the OAC Tournament to Marietta College and was sent into the loser's bracket. From there, BW defeated Heidelberg, avenged the loss to Marietta and then beat John Carroll in the first game on Championship Saturday.

In the first game, Brad Gugliotta and Alex Green led the way for BW at the plate. Gugliotta, the lead off man, was 5-for-6 with one run scored and one RBI. Green, the nine-hole hitter, went 4-for-5 and drove in four runs.  

The Yellow Jackets had led 6-0 through three and half innings, but then gave up that lead and trailed by two, 9-7, heading into the ninth inning. One out into the ninth inning the heavens opened and dumped rain causing a two hour, 25 minute rain delay.

After the delay, Baldwin Wallace would load the bases with one out. A bases loaded walk and one of Green's four hits gave the Yellow Jackets the win and forced a second game for the OAC Tournament title.

In the nightcap, Baldwin Wallace jumped out to a 2-0, lead with a pair of runs in the second frame. Alex Green's fielder's choice brought home Eric Murphy and Gugliotta drove in Kory Gillissie on a sacrifice fly.

JCU would respond with a three-run fourth inning. Jimmy Spagna had a RBI single and Mark Huddle drove into two runs including Spagna. The Blue Streaks added an insurance run in the fifth frame. Chet Lauer scored when a throwing error by the shortstop allowed the inning to continue.

John Carroll's pitching duo of Mark Materise and Aaron Lapagia held BW to three run on 11 hits to capture the OAC Tournament crown.

"He (Materise) did a great job," Thibeault said. "He located his fastball well, he had his slider and he commanded both sides of the plate."

In the seventh inning, Handel drove in yet another run to cut the John Carroll lead in half.  

John Carroll answered in the bottom half of the inning in a big way, with two runs. Jimmy Spagna drove in a run on a fielder's choice and David Crowley drove in a run to give the Blue Streaks the OAC Tournament championship and an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.