The Southern Ohio Copperheads fell just short in a back-and-forth battle with the Muskegon Clippers on Wednesday afternoon, losing 6-4 in the first game of a doubleheader at Bob Wren Stadium. Despite strong late-inning pressure at the plate, the Copperheads couldn’t complete the comeback in the seven-inning contest.

Muskegon struck early after a single and an error allowed Ethan Delgado to race around the bases and score the first run of the game. Copperheads starting pitcher Jack Leonard quickly settled in, inducing a pair of flyouts to end the threat and keep the deficit at one.

Southern Ohio’s bats were quiet through the first three innings against Clippers pitcher Ty Randall. Leonard held the line on the mound, working efficiently through traffic and fielding support from Frankie Clark, Jackson Kale, and Nic Lembo.

Action picked back up in the bottom of the fourth. Lembo led off with a walk and scored on a single from Ronnie Rowley. Rowley later stole home during a pickle that followed Jack Ferguson’s attempt to take second, putting the Copperheads up 2-1.

The Clippers tied the game up in the top of the fifth after a hit-by-pitch and a walk loaded the bases, and a walk from Jack Bakus brought in a run. Zane Loveday stepped in as pitcher and kept the game level at 2-2 by the end of the frame.

The Copperheads responded quickly in the bottom half. Alex Taylor singled and then stole home on a miscue following a bunt from Frankie Clark. That run gave Southern Ohio a 3-2 lead heading into the sixth.

But the sixth inning unraveled fast. A series of walks and a key RBI single from Connor Kelly (facing his Northwood University teammate, pitcher Adam Wandzel) gave the Clippers a 6-3 lead. Despite relief appearances from Wandzel and Reon Iwase, the inning ended with four Clippers crossing the plate.

Southern Ohio tacked on one run in the sixth with a leadoff double from Nate Koster and an RBI single from Kale, but the Copperheads were unable to mount a rally in the seventh, dropping the first game of the twin bill.

The Copperheads look to bounce back quickly in the second game of the doubleheader, scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at Bob Wren Stadium.

By: Maggie Malone