Triceratops power their way into NJCAA Region XII Round 2 with 18-9 run-rule win

PARMA, Ohio (athletics.tri-c.edu) – In a winner-take-all game three, the Cuyahoga Community College Triceratops (31-16-1, 13-3 OCCAC) erased a 7-3 deficit with strong team hitting to notch a series-winning 18-9 run-rule victory over Bryant & Stratton College (OH) (26-29, 12-2 OCCAC), May 8.

It took a few innings for the Triceratops' offense to find their rhythm, but there was no turning back once they did. A solo home run by Jackson Boles (So.) in the sixth inning stole the momentum and kicked off three huge innings for Tri-C, with 14 of the team's 18 runs coming in the sixth, seventh, and eighth innings.

Each inning also saw a healthy Triceratop home run, with Boles kicking it off in the sixth, Brayden Bortnick (Fr./Mentor, Ohio) launching his first collegiate bomb in the seventh, and Alex "A.J." Trobenter (Fr./Euclid, Ohio) hitting his third home run in two games to walk things off in the eighth.

It wasn't just home runs, though, that got Tri-C the win. It was a full team effort at the plate, with the final line showing 12 hits, nine walks and seven stolen bases on the day. Trobenter, Bortnick, and Nathan Hill (So./Medina, Ohio/Toledo) all had multiple base knocks on the day. Hill and Jamir Ross (R-Fr./Dayton, Ohio) each scored four runs on the day.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Bryant & Stratton drew first blood with a two-RBI single from Adam Kidder to take a 2-0 lead in the top of the first.
• The Triceratops posted three straight walks to load the bases with one out before Nash Driedger (Fr./Windsor, Ontario, Canada) drove in one run with a fielder's choice to short, cutting the Bobcats' lead to 2-1 through one.
• A third Bobcat run came in via an RBI walk, putting Bryant & Stratton up 3-1 in the top of the second.
• The Bryant & Stratton lead wouldn't last long, as Ross ripped a line drive to center field that got past the Bobcat fielder with Ross racing for a two-run inside the park home run to tie the game 3-3 through two.
• Two two-run homers by the Bobcats in the top of the fourth put Bryant & Stratton up 7-3.
• Tri-C got back on the board with an RBI single from Vinny Gallaher (So./Toledo, Ohio) in the bottom of the fifth, cutting the deficit to 7-4.
• The Triceratops raced back into the game, taking an 8-7 lead bottom of the sixth with Boles's solo home run for the second consecutive game, a Bortnick sacrifice fly, and RBI singles from Hill and Trobenter.
• Bryant & Stratton's fourth error of the game allowed Boles to score, but Bortnick's first career home run – a two-run blast to left – served as an exclamation point. With another RBI single from Trobenter and an RBI double from Driedger, the Triceratops ended the seventh up 13-7.
• A second home run from Reach pushed some momentum back to the Bobcats, with the score narrowing to 13-9 in the top of the eighth. But Kyle Figuray (So.) shook off a ground rule double in the next at bat to close the frame without any further damage.
• A two-out rally, featuring an RBI single by Hill, a two-RBI single by Brock Miller (So./Willard, Ohio) and a walk-off, put the game on ice with five runs earning an 18-9 run-rule victory and trip to Jackson.

UP NEXT

The win sends the Triceratops onto the second rounds of the NJCAA Region XII District Championships, May 13-16 in Jackson, Michigan, hosted by Jackson College. The Triceratops will be the No. 3 seed in Jackson, facing Macomb Community College May 14 at 11 a.m.

All subsequent games in the Regional Tournament will be broadcast live on the NJCAA Region XII YouTube channel.

FOLLOW THE TRICERATOPS

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You can follow the baseball team on Instagram @tricbaseball.