HAMILTON — Momentum can dissipate just as quickly as it appears.
Following a much-needed doubleheader sweep the day before to seemingly gain some steam just past the midway point in the season, Southern Ohio ran straight into the Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League’s (GLSCL) best out in a road trip to Hamilton. Giving up a four-run inning in the latter stages of the contest, the Copperheads ultimately fell 5-2 to the Joes on Friday night.
The ‘Cheads offense fell flat after the long bus ride, only picking up five hits total as a team with three of them coming in the eighth inning or later. Alex Ungar ripped a two-run double as part of a two-hit day while Billy Adams also picked up two hits while scoring a run.
Gavyn Smith grabbed the only other hit for Southern Ohio while Trenton Neuer scored a run.
On the mound, it looked to be a positive outing from Ben Bates before faltering late. The Adrian College product held the Joes to just one run through five frames before ultimately allowing four in the sixth. His final line went six innings pitched, allowing four earned runs on seven hits while striking out five and walking three.
Adam Wandzel tossed the final two innings of relief, allowing just one hit while keeping Hamilton scoreless.
Despite Bates quickly settling down, things started off as hectic as possible for Southern Ohio. After the ‘Cheads went down in order to start the game, the Joes’ Braxton Baird ripped a leadoff triple to instantly put some pressure on Bates. He eventually scored one batter later on a sacrifice fly to give Hamilton the initial lead but Bates quickly maneuvered through the rest of the inning to get out of trouble.
On the other side, there just simply wasn’t any help from the Copperheads’ offense. Nine of the first 10 batters of the game were sent down for Southern Ohio with the team’s first hit of the game coming on a single from Adams to leadoff the fourth. Southern Ohio eventually loaded the bases up with two outs in the fourth frame but couldn’t cash in as the team still trailed by just one run at that point.
Clinging on to such a miniscule lead for an extended time, Hamilton finally created some breathing room with the four-run sixth. A leadoff home run off the bat of Ryan Novak got the festivities started in the bottom of the frame before an RBI base knock and an error from Smith at first base allowed the Joes to build up the five-run cushion.
The offense sputtered over the next few innings before finally creating another serious chance in the eighth. This time with the Copperheads coming through to an extent.
After Neuer and Adams reached base at the top of the lineup, Ungar smacked a two-run double to bring the pair in and make it a 5-2 game but the chance quickly ended as Hamilton shut the door soon after to capture the series opener.
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