7-4 Win Highlights Toledo League Week

In the first 2011 matchup between the friendly halves of the Toledo Hawks' Baseball Organization, the "Gold" squad raised their stock by outpointing the "Black", claiming victory in a 7-4 win on July 12.  The Gold Hawks also returned to Bowman Field on July 14, and remained undefeated in the Toledo League with a 9-0 win over the Genoa Rampage.

The "Hawk-fest" on a warm Tuesday evening saw both teams score early; but the Gold Hawks set the tone for the game by answering two initial scores by the Black with three first-inning runs of their own.  The Black Hawks scored their pair when Matt Vannett (BGSU/Bowling Green) hit a two-out double off Gold starter Brian Koehl (Heidelberg/Sylvania).  Those two scores, however, would be the only ones that Koehl allowed in his five innings of work; he allowed one third-inning bunt single to Jordan Schwerer (N.Kentucky/Whitehouse), walked three, and hit a batter while striking out three of the Black bats.

Cory Lehman (Siena Heights/Toledo) again ignited the Gold offense; the first of his three singles led off the home half of the first.  RBI singles were provided by Eric Croak (Toledo/Toledo), Eric Yunker (Ohio Northern/Holland), and R.J. Rios (Adrian/Toledo).  Lehman scored again in the second off Black starter Nick Welling (Defiance/Bowling Green) when he singled, advanced on a hit by Blake Schmenk (Owens CC/Perrysburg), and rode home on a base hit by Drew Kunz (Bowling Green/Oregon).  The Hawks added two more runs in the third, starting with Yunker's leadoff home run to the trees beyond the leftfield fence; Lehman added a two-out single that scored fellow Siena teammate Mike Lollo (Allen Park, MI), who had singled and stolen second.

The Gold Hawks continued their upswing in the fourth against Black Hawk reliever Jay Yost (Baldwin-Wallace/Tiffin).  Ryan Williams (Tiffin/Maumee) rapped another two-out single to rightfield, scoring Croak.  Croak had singled earlier in the inning to join Lehman and Yunker in the multiple-hit club; Brett Howard (Siena Heights/Toledo) also had two singles in the game.

In the top of the seventh, Toledo Black scored two runs, highlighted by Yost's double off Lucas Willitzer (Adrian/Defiance).  Willitzer worked the final two innings and gave up three hits over that span.  Finishing the game on the mound for the Black was Sam Fischer (Adrian/Monclova), who held the Gold scoreless in the bottom of the sixth.

Thursday night's contest saw Ricky Volante (Lake Erie/Tappahannock, VA), Brett Kuebler (Siena Heights/Toledo), and Drew Kuns hold the Rampage scoreless in the 9-0 blanking.  Volante threw four innings, allowing one hit and two walks while striking out four.  Kuebler struck out two against a walk in his two frames, and Kuns chucked two K's in the seventh.  A three-run second inning was the offensive key for the Gold Hawks, as a one-out single by Mattie DeDoes (Oberlin/Ann Arbor, MI) was followed by RBI singles by Mike Lollo and Corey Lehman to vault the Gold Hawks to a lead that would not be challenged.  In addition, Kunz and Eric Croak both had RBI doubles in the later innings.

The Gold Hawks suffered a setback on Tuesday night when catcher Steve DiNanno (Oberlin/Northbrook, IL) was lost for the remainder of the season.  DiNanno incurred a broken jaw while warming up a pitcher in the bullpen.  Reminder to all Hawks players:  WEAR A MASK whenever you are in down in a catching position, in all cases !