The Oxford varsity baseball team hosted Macomb Dakota for a doubleheader May 19. OHS won the first game 4-1 and lost the second 7-3.
Nate Brubaker had a great outing as starting pitcher for the Wildcats in the first game. In four innings of mound work, he held Macomb scoreless on two hits. Nate Morris and Michael Kitchner provided ‘steady relief,? said Coach Jeff Willis, and ‘held the win in check.?
One highlight came from junior 3rd baseman Vinnie Griffith who had a ‘clutch hit,? said Willis. With two outs and bases loaded in the bottom of the third, Griffith delivered a double to right center that scored two. Willis credited the ‘heads up base running? of his team that pushed runners to second and third bases
In the second game, OHS had an early lead thanks to the nifty bat work of 3rd baseman Kyle Hartwick. Coach Willis said that Hartwick turned in some clutch play, coming through strongly in the third inning. Willis said Hartwick ‘roped a triple? and finished the afternoon 4-5 with two RBIs.
Macomb went ahead in the top of the sixth, driving home two runs, and then two more in the seventh, leading to the final score of 7-3 in the league game.
On May 15, the OHS varsity played a non-league doubleheader against visiting St. Mary’s Preparatory. Oxford won the first match 6-1 and then tied the second 5-5.
Coach Willis said his team ‘played well in the first game by taking advantage of mistakes.? The final score reflects the confidence the OHS men have, Willis said.
The Wildcats also made great use of the ‘solid starting effort? from pitcher Matt Zitny. Sean Chavez sealed the game with three steady innings of relief.
In the second game, the Wildcats had to claw their way back. According to Coach Willis, ‘we gave them an early lead and came back to tie and eventually take the lead? in the second game.
The match didn’t end there, though. St. Mary’s stormed back to tie the game 5-5 before it was called due to darkness.
The second game against St. Mary’s slipped away from us, Willis said. ‘We had opportunities to win the game (but) just couldn’t get the clutch hit,? the coach said.