After a narrow loss in the first game of Wednesday’s doubleheader, the Southern Ohio Copperheads couldn’t find their footing in game two, falling 8-3 to the Muskegon Clippers at Bob Wren Stadium. Despite early hustle and strong plays in the field, the Clippers pulled away late with a three-run seventh inning to seal the win.

Southern Ohio came out swinging in the opening frame. Haruta Endo singled to lead things off and, after a pair of outs, Jack Ferguson advanced on an outfield error and later stole home on a wild pitch to give the Copperheads a 1-0 lead. But the Clippers responded quickly. After a pair of singles and a costly outfield error in the second inning, Aidan Robinson's triple brought in two runs to swing the lead in Muskegon’s favor, 2-1.

The Copperheads tied it up in the bottom of the second, thanks to a double from Derek Occhipinti and a run home on a groundout from Endo. But from there, the Clippers’ offense chipped away steadily while Southern Ohio struggled to capitalize on scoring opportunities.

Braden Graves knocked an RBI double for Muskegon in the third. The fourth inning only brought more trouble for the Copperheads as the Clippers loaded the bases and brought in two more runs, one on an RBI single from Ethan Delgado and another on a balk. By the fifth inning, the Clippers had taken control of the scoreboard, leading 5-3.

Southern Ohio stayed scrappy with another stolen home by Endo in the bottom of the fourth, but couldn’t mount further offense against Clippers pitcher Connor Kelly, who entered in the fifth and pitched three scoreless innings to close out the game.

The Clippers capped their scoring with an eventful top of the seventh, bringing in two runs on a double from Taylor Head and an RBI single from Robinson. Southern Ohio was retired by three groundouts in the bottom half, ending the game at 8-3.

The Copperheads move forward from the tough doubleheader sweep with their next chance for a win coming Friday, June 20 on the road against the Lima Locos. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. at Simmons Field in Lima.

By: Maggie Malone