Maryland baseball defeats Ohio State in game one of series, 7-5

Leading by one run in the eighth inning, Maryland baseball looked to score some much-needed insurance runs following a two-run seventh inning by Ohio State.

With two runners on and two outs, Matt Shaw looked to deliver. And the junior did just that.

He blasted a three-run home run over the right field wall, extending the Maryland lead to four with only six more outs needed to seal the deal. 

The Terps (20-13, 5-2 Big Ten) would never look back from that point, defeating Ohio State (17-16, 2-8 Big Ten) 7-5 behind Shaw’s home run and a quality outing by Jason Savacool.

Shaw finished the game 2-for-3 at the plate, crossing home plate two more times for three total runs scored.

“At the end of the day, you need your big-time players to be good and Matt Shaw was good today in the right spot,” coach Rob Vaughn said. 

Savacool got the start for Maryland, throwing a dominant six innings, The junior right-hander threw 109 pitches, striking out seven while allowing only one run. The performance earned him his fourth win of the season, the most on the team.

“His stuff was almost too good tonight,” Vaughn said. “The pitches were so good he was getting swing and misses on them… but it did drive his pitch count up.”

Heading into Friday’s battle against the Buckeyes, the Terps were looking to rebound after dropping their last two games against Georgetown and Rutgers. Maryland had gone 2-4 over its past six games, struggling to play cohesively as a unit.

The Terps got scoring started early after a leadoff home run by junior catcher Luke Shliger in the top of the first. The home run was Shliger’s seventh of the season and fourth leadoff home run. It was also his 45th run, good for the team lead. 

Maryland had a chance to continue its scoring later in the inning with the bases loaded. But sophomore right fielder Zach Martin grounded out with two outs, ending the inning with just a run for the Terps. 

The Terps added on to their scoring in the top of the third. With Shaw on third and two outs, sophomore left-hander Gavin Bruni threw a wild pitch on ball four against sophomore first baseman Eddie Hacopian, giving Shaw enough time to sprint and slide home for another Maryland score. 

After walking the next batter, Bruni was pulled for fifth-year right-hander Nolan Clegg. Bruni struggled in his start, walking seven batters and throwing balls on 59% of his pitches. Clegg closed the inning and held the Terps scoreless in the fourth.

The Buckeyes got on the board in the bottom of the fourth after a leadoff home run by freshman shortstop Henry Kaczmar. The homer was Kaczmar’s fifth of the year, good for second on the team behind graduate first baseman Marcus Ernst. 

Kaczmar finished the game 4-5 at the dish, bringing home 3 RBIs. 

Maryland followed by loading the bases with their first three batters in the fifth, as Clegg hit two and walked another. Clegg was quickly pulled for sophomore right hander Jake Johnson.

The pitching change didn’t affect Maryland, however, as it scored two runs before the end of the inning. Hacopian led the scoring surge with a sac fly to center, bringing Shaw home for his second run of the game. 

Martin continued with a sac bunt, sending sophomore designated hitter Ian Petrutz home from second. Martin was able to reach first on the bunt after a throwing error from Johnson. 

Martin has been on a tear for Maryland since entering the starting lineup the past weekend against Rutgers. He entered hitting .466 since the lineup change, recording six runs and two RBIs. 

With runners on second and third and two outs in the bottom of the sixth, Ohio State got back into scoring position. The Buckeyes couldn’t draw home, however, exiting the inning empty-handed following a pop fly by freshman left fielder Matthew Graveline. 

The sixth inning was Savacool’s last; he was replaced by junior left-hander Tommy Kane in the bottom of the seventh.

“I thought Jason did a really nice job, he gave up a solo home run and that was really it. I thought he did a nice job navigating around some things,” Vaughn said.

After getting two quick outs to start his outing, Kane began to struggle, allowing two straight singles. In the following at-bat, Kaczmar appeared to have popped out to Hacopian, but the umpire ruled the ball hit Kaczmar’s foot, extending the battle. Kaczmar then launched a two-RBI double off the left field wall, inching the Buckeyes closer, 4-3. 

The Terps had an answer for the scores in the eighth, however. With two on and two outs, Shaw smashed a three-run home run into right, extending the Maryland lead to 7-3. The shot was Shaw’s 12th of the season, the second-highest total on the team. 

Redshirt sophomore right-hander Nigel Belgrave looked to close the game for Maryland in the ninth, but a two-out scoring burst from the Buckeyes brought them within two. Redshirt junior right-hander David Falco Jr. came in and secured the final out, giving Maryland the 7-5 victory.

Maryland will look to win the series on Saturday, with first pitch scheduled for 2 p.m. at Bill Davis Stadium.