GAMBIER, Ohio — DJ Mendez went 5-for-5 with a home run and five RBIs, but it was not enough as the Wabash College baseball team squandered a late two-run lead and fell to Kenyon 11-10 in 10 innings in a North Coast Athletic Conference game Saturday.
Wabash (12-17, 1-8 NCAC) and Kenyon (9-19, 3-6) combined for 34 hits and 21 runs in a wild affair at Gambier, Ohio. The game was the first of a scheduled doubleheader, but weather delays will force game two to be played Sunday, April 19, at 1 p.m. at Kenyon.
Pinch hitter Colbie Corpuz doubled to right field with two RBIs in the bottom of the ninth inning, scoring Ben Russell and Aaron Moss to tie the game at 10-10. In the 10th, Moss singled to left field with two outs, Parker Ellis singled to center to advance Moss to third and then stole second, and Russell singled to third base to drive home Moss with the winning run.
The Little Giants built an early lead and appeared in control for most of the contest. Wabash struck first in the opening inning when Ben Henke laid down a bunt single and reached second on a throwing error by Kenyon pitcher Peyton Hodges, scoring Caleb Ellspermann, before Mendez lifted a sacrifice fly to right field to plate Landen Basey for a 2-0 advantage.
Kenyon answered with an unearned run in the bottom of the first when Otto McDill reached on an error by pitcher Caleb Everson, allowing Tyler Nee — who had tripled to lead off the frame — to score.
The third inning turned into a slugfest. Mendez launched a three-run homer on a full count, scoring Henke and Ellspermann to push the lead to 5-1. Will Fremion then singled to center field to drive in Will Wallace, making it 6-1.
But Kenyon erupted for five runs in the bottom of the third to tie the game. McDill drove in Nee with a groundout, and Niko Price singled to right field to score Gio Giuliani. Ellis tripled to right center for two RBIs, scoring Moss and Zack Webber. Russell then singled to second base to plate Ellis and knot the score at 6-6.
The back-and-forth continued. In the fourth, Wallace walked with the bases loaded as Basey scored on a wild pitch to put Wabash ahead 7-6. The Owls tied it again in the bottom half when Giuliani singled to center to score Nee.
Wabash regained the lead in the fifth with a pair of runs. Henke singled to right to drive in Jacob Edwards, and Mendez singled to center to score Ellspermann, giving the Little Giants a 9-7 cushion. Kenyon pulled within one when Ben Zimmerman singled to center to score Russell.
Ellspermann extended the lead to 10-8 in the sixth with an RBI single to left field that scored Bradley Gilliam.
From there, the Little Giants went silent against Kenyon reliever Jack Enger. Enger (2-1) earned the win, tossing five innings and allowing just one run on four hits with two strikeouts and two walks. Wabash managed only one hit — a Mendez double in the ninth — over the final four innings against the right-hander.
Mendez was the offensive star for Wabash, going 5-for-5 with a double, a home run, a sacrifice fly and five RBIs. Ellspermann contributed two hits, two runs scored, an RBI and two walks, while Henke went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a walk. Fremion added two hits and an RBI, and Gilliam collected two hits while scoring a run. Edwards reached base four times, going 1-for-2 with three walks.
As a team, Wabash collected 16 hits and drew nine walks but left 12 runners on base.
On the mound, starter Everson lasted three innings, allowing seven hits and six runs — five earned — while striking out one. Reliever Bryce Haney gave up up eight hits and four runs over 5.1 innings with five strikeouts. Haney was plagued by three wild pitches and hit three batters during his outing. Jackson Woehr (3-4) pitched the final 1.1 innings, surrendering three hits and the walk-off run to take the loss.
Kenyon's Nee led all hitters with a 4-for-4 day that included a double, a triple and three runs scored. Moss went 3-for-6 with three runs, Russell was 3-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs scored, and Ellis finished 2-for-6 with a triple and two RBIs.
The two teams will complete the doubleheader Sunday at 1 p.m. in Gambier.
