Wabash concluded the North Coast Athletic Conference portion of its 2005 baseball season Sunday at Denison University. The Big Red swept the doubleheader from the Little Giants, taking a 4-3 victory in game before completing the series sweep with a 9-7 victory in the nightcap.
The Little Giants took a 3-1 lead after Denison scored in the second inning. Billy King (Peoria, AZ/Peoria HS – Glendale CC) laced a one-out double, advancing to third on a passed ball. Shane Noble (Sullivan, IN/Sullivan) was hit by a pitch, setting up Jared Bogan (Struthers, OH/Struthers). The junior first baseman slammed a pitch over the wall for his second home run of the series and fifth of the season.
But Wabash would be unable to hold onto the lead. The Big Red scored a run in the bottom of the fifth and two more in the sixth to earn the one-run victory. The Little Giants posed a threat in the sixth with two singles to start the inning. But both runners were picked off in a missed hit-and-run attempt, killing the rally.
Wabash outhit the Big Red 10-7. King and Bogan each had two hits to pace the squad.
The Little Giants exploded for three runs in the first inning of the final game. Noble and Bogan walked with two outs, bringing Chris Sides (Brownsburg, IN/Brownsburg) to the plate. The designated hitter pounded his second homer of the season to put Wabash up.
Denison responded with two runs of its own in the bottom of the inning, but Wabash came back with a run in the second to move in front 4-2. Catcher Matt Backs (Bedford, IN/Bedford North Lawrence) scored after reaching on a fielder’s choice when King’s single to right was mishandled by the Big Red’s right fielder. The lead was short-lived, however, when Denison put a four-spot on the scoreboard to lead 6-4 after three innings.
Wabash tied the score in the fourth when Backs scored on a King double. King scored the tying run on a Bogan single with two outs two batters later.
A two-run double in the bottom of the fourth helped the Big Red to a three-run inning and a 9-6 lead. Wabash would add a run in the top of the seventh when Bogan scored on a sacrifice fly by Bryan Scheffel (Fairfield, OH/Stephen T. Badin), but it would not be enough.
Bogan went 3-for-3 in game two with an RBI and two runs scored. Danny Schubert (Lebanon, IL/Lebanon), Phil Ramos (Zillah, WA/Zillah), King, and Sides each tossed in two hits.
Wabash ends the conference season with a 6-10 mark, falling to 15-20 overall. The Little Giants will play Franklin College at Victory Field in Indianapolis Wednesday night at 6 p.m. before concluding the 2005 season next weekend against Case Western Reserve and Defiance.