TicketsSTARKVILLE, Miss. - The University of Cincinnati baseball team allowed just one run to pick up a 3-1 season-opening victory over Miami (Ohio) in Starkville, Mississippi.
Junior Ian Happ (Pittsburgh, Pa./Mt. Lebanon) collected three hits, including his first homerun of the season, to pace the Bearcats offense. Junior Devin Wenzel (Blandon, Pa./Fleetwood Area) added two hits and two RBI to the effort.
On the mound, sophomore Andrew Zellner (Farmersville, Ohio/Farmersville) went five innings with four strikeouts and no runs allowed to pick up the win.
// Notables
- The victory over Miami was the first season-opening win for the Bearcats since an 11-5 win over Ohio State on Feb. 10, 2011.
- Zellner picked up the win while redshirt sophomore Colton Cleary (Nicholasville, Ky./Lexington Catholic) earned the save. Cleary led the Bearcats with five saves in 2014.
- Freshmen Kyle Mottice (Canal Fulton, Ohio/Jackson), Ryan Noda (Volo, Ill./Grant), David Orndorff (Pasadena, Calif./Pasadena Polytechnic), Manny Rodriguez (Brooklyn, N.Y./Calvert Hall) and Connor Van Caugherty (Ridgewood, N.J./Ridgewood) all made their collegiate debuts in the game.
- Happ hit his first homerun of the season in the bottom of the fifth inning to give UC a 3-0 lead. Happ hit six long balls in 2013 and five more in 2014 to lead the Bearcats each year.
- Additionally, Happ hit a single and a double, putting him just a triple shy of the cycle. No UC player has successfully hit for the cycle since 1999.
- Noda was walked three times and was hit by a pitch to reach base on four occasions during the game. He is the first player to be walked three times in a game since April 8, 2014, when Justin Glass got three free passes against Wright State.
// Neal's Notes
"It's good to get the first win under our belts," said head coach Ty Neal. "It's a challenge and you never know when it is going to happen, so it is good to have it happen in the first game. We showed that we are going to find a way to score some runs but we also showed out immaturity in some areas. We need to play cleaner baseball in the batter's box, on defense and on the mound. But I'm pumped for game two."
// Key Innings
Bottom of the First
A single by Happ and two hit by pitches to Noda and sophomore Connor McVey (Mason, Ohio/Mason) loaded the bases for Cincinnati with one out. Two batters later, Wenzel delivered with a single through the left side to score Happ and Noda and give his team a 2-0 lead.
Bottom of the Fifth
With one out, Happ blasted his first homerun of the season over the right field fence. At that point, the junior was 3-for-3 with two runs scored as the Bearcats held a 3-0 lead.
Top of the Seventh
Miami threatened in the top of the seventh inning, putting a runner on third with just one out, but Orndorff induced a pair of ground balls to escape unscathed, holding on to a 3-0 UC lead.
Top of the Ninth
Cleary entered the game with two outs in the eighth and remained in the game for the final three outs. The redshirt sophomore went 1-2-3 in the frame with a groundout, a foul out and a fly out to earn the save for Cincinnati.
// Up Next
Cincinnati will complete Friday's doubleheader with a match at No. 14 Mississippi State at 5 p.m. ET. Freshman Dalton Lehnen (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North) is scheduled to take the mound for the Bearcats.
// Follow the Bearcats
For all of the latest information on Cincinnati baseball, please visit GoBEARCATS.com. For up to the minute updates, follow Cincinnati baseball (@UCincyBaseball) and Coach Neal (@Ty_Neal_UC) on twitter. You can also find the Bearcats on Facebook.
// Ticket Information
Season tickets for all 23 home matches can be purchased for as little $10. For more information, visit GoBEARCATS.com/tickets or call 1-877-CATS-TIX.
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