CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – Another big inning for the Cougar batters and solid outings on the mound from Jordan Wood and Easton Walker gave the BYU baseball team a 5-1 victory over Ohio State on Friday at Whataburger Field.
Game Summary
- For the second day in a row, BYU again had a big inning, scoring all five of its runs in the bottom of the third
- The Cougar pitching staff set season bests in runs allowed (1), hits allowed (3) and walks allowed (2)
- Combined with wins over Northwestern last week, the victory over Ohio State marks the first time in program history the Cougars have defeated two Big Ten teams in the same season
Player Highlights
- Jordan Wood: W (1-0), 6.0 IP, 5 K, 1 ER, 3 H, BB
- Easton Walker: S (1), 3.0 IP, 2 K, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB
- Jackson Cluff: 2-for-3, 2B, 2 RBI, R, BB
Wood earned his first win of the season, allowing just one run and three hits over six strong innings for BYU (4-2). Walker followed up with the first save of his young career, allowing no hits, no runs and one walk over the final three frames against the Buckeyes (4-1).
“Woody was a bulldog today and Easton was solid as usual,” said BYU head coach Mike Littlewood.
On offense, the Cougars scored all five of their runs in the bottom of the third. With Danny Gelalich on second and one out, Brian Hsu’s single through the right side brought Gelalich home for the game’s first run. After a Brock Hale walk, Jackson Cluff hit a bases-clearing double before coming around himself off an ensuing double by Keaton Kringlen. Kringlen then rounded out the scoring by coming home thanks to a single up the middle by Mitch McIntyre.
“Offensively we had a really solid approach against (OSU starting pitcher Seth) Lonsway,” Littlewood said. “We did a nice job taking fringe pitches and getting ourselves into offensive counts.”
Like Thursday against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, the Cougars again had contributions from down the lineup, with seven BYU batters recording a hit. Cluff finished 2-for-3 with two RBIs, a run and a walk, while McIntyre finished 2-for-3 with an RBI and a walk. After collecting three hits yesterday, Noah Hill followed up by going 2-for-4 against the Buckeyes.
BYU will close out its weekend in Corpus Christi by playing Oral Roberts on Saturday, Feb. 23, at 1 p.m. CT. The game will be streamed live online and can be heard on BYU Radio and ESPN 960.
PROVO, Utah - The BYU baseball team travels to Corpus Christi, Texas, this week to play three games as part of the Kleberg Bank College Classic starting Thursday.
The Cougars (2-2) will play Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (2-3) on Thursday, Feb. 21, at 6 p.m. CT before going against Ohio State (4-0) the following day at 2 p.m. CT. BYU will finish the trip with a game versus Oral Roberts (3-0) on Saturday at 1 p.m. CT. All games will have live video streaming, audio streaming, radio and live stats here.
Junior right-hander Jarod Lessar is schedule to start against the Islanders on Thursday with senior right-hander Jordan Wood set for the Buckeyes on Friday. Saturday's starter is yet to be determined.
After opening the season at two MLB spring training facilities, the Cougars will play four games this weekend at Whataburger Field, home of the Corpus Christi Hooks, the Houston Astros’ double-A affiliate.
BYU won two of three last weekend against Northwestern in Mesa, Arizona, including a walk-off 4-3 victory in 10 innings. BYU also won game three, 11-2. The Cougars lost a close matchup in game two against the Wildcats, 3-2, and dropped a contest against Cal on Monday by a 10-6 score.