Princeton, IN – For their seventh and eight game of the season, the Mighty Oaks hosted the Trolls of Trinity Christian College. After a big victory in the first game, a walk-off homerun in extra innings was needed to secure the victory in game two of the doubleheader.
Game 1
On a beautiful day in Indiana, the ball flew well at Gil Hodges Field. A lead-off triple from
Payton Hall in the second inning, started off a hot inning.
Garrett Causey followed with a two-run homerun. Shortstop
Xander Willis replicated what Causey did and went yard in the next at-bat. By the end of the second inning, the Mighty Oaks were up 4-0.
In the third inning, Trinity Christian was able to score one run. Two innings later, the home team was able to grow their lead. A single by
Conner Oxley started off the inning. He was able to score on a single by
Xander Willis. Willis later scored the sixth run on an RBI single from
Alec Pruitt.
Treven Madden connected on a pitch in the sixth inning, to move the score to 8-1. He brought home
Sam Pinckert with his two-run homerun. 1-8 was the final score in Princeton, as starting pitcher
Hunter Callahan did not allow much offense.
Callahan threw five innings, allowing seven hits, one run (earned) and he walked one and struck out four. His reliever,
Tyler Butler, shut the door in the last two innings. He just allowed one hit and struck out one.
Game 2
In the third inning, the Mighty Oaks offense got going. With the bases loaded,
Treven Madden singled to left field, scoring two runs. In next half inning, Trinity Christian made it a one-run ballgame, by going yard. The score was 1-2 now.
It didn't take long for the home team to expand their lead. A two-run homerun from
Xander Willis moved the score to 1-4.
Sam Pinckert was able to bring home another run with a sacrifice fly, before
Jared Kirkman scored the sixth run for the Mighty Oaks on a wild pitch.
In the later part of the game, the Mighty Oaks defense struggled a bit. The Trolls of Trinity Christian were able to score three runs in the sixth inning and two more in the seventh. All of the sudden the game was tied.
In the top of the eight of the, Trinity Christian was able to get a lead. It was do-or-die for the Mighty Oaks in the bottom of the eight.
Payton Hall, who led-off the inning, got hit by a pitch. The next guy up was
Garrett Causey, who had already hit one homerun throughout the day. Causey was able to do it again, a big fly to left centerfield won it for the Mighty Oaks. 7-8 was the final score in Princeton.
On the mound for the Mighty Oaks,
Christian Burgrabe (5 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 5 SO),
Garrett Whiteker (0.2 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 SO),
Blake Mincey (0.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 SO),
Milan van der Breggen (0.1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO) and
Evan Price (W, 1.2 IP, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO) split the duties.
Next up for the Mighty Oaks, is a busy weekend. On Saturday, February 18 the Pilots from Bethel University will travel to Princeton for a doubleheader starting at noon. The following day, the Mighty Oaks take on Marian University for another doubleheader, also starting at noon. These games will all take place at Gil Hodges Field, in Princeton.
