The Little Giants trailed 2-1 in the first game before exploding for five runs in the third inning. After the Tigers retired the first two batters in the top of the third, the next two Little Giants reached base to set up co-captain Bryson Renbarger (Converse, IN/Eastern). The senior first baseman parked a three-run homer over the left-center field fence to give Wabash a 4-2 lead. The Little Giants weren't done. After Bill Goff (Brownsburg, IN/Brownsburg) and Jared Martin (Rosedale, IN/Riverton Parke) reached base, fellow freshman Tyler Nance (Celebration, FL/Celebration) brought both runners to the plate with a two-run single to left-center.
But Wabash was unable to hold the lead. After starting the bottom of the fourth inning with a DePauw runner reaching on an error, the Tigers capitalized by scoring three unearned runs to cut the Little Giants' lead to 6-5. DePauw added three runs in the fifth, the only earned runs of the entire game, to take the 8-6 victory.
Renbarger, Goff, and Jason Jablonski (Poland, OH/Cardinal Mooney) led the Little Giants offensively, each finishing the game with two hits. Marc Rowe (West Point, IN/McCutcheon) was tagged with his first loss of the season after throwing 4-2/3 innings.
The Wabash offense stalled in the second game while the fielding continued to struggle. The Little Giants managed only four hits while committing four errors in the contest on the way to a 9-1 loss. The four errors led to two runs for the Tigers, scoring six runs in the third inning on two Wabash errors to put the game out of reach. Jake Martin (Rushville, IN/Rushville) took the loss for Wabash, his third of the year.
The losses put the Little Giants a game under .500 with a 7-8 record. Wabash will open the home portion of the 2002 season on Saturday afternoon with a doubleheader against Kalamazoo College. The first game begins at 1 p.m. at Mud Hollow Field.
Game One Boxscore
Game Two Boxscore