After being swept by the Hoosiers, Ohio State couldn’t afford to lose this game. They’re still in the basement of the Big Ten, but you can’t lose to an instate MAC team after a 5-12 start to the season. The Redhawks came into the game 10-9, and the boys from Oxford would have loved to beat the Buckeyes. Butler County, Ohio’s Miami, would like to beat the giants from Columbus in any sport, and on the diamond is no different.
Ohio State was happy to be back at Nick Swisher Field in Bill Davis Stadium, where they are 5-1 this year (They’re 0-6 on the road and 1-5 at neutral sites). The fireworks came early in this one. The Redhawks got a 1-0 lead in their half of the first inning, but the Buckeyes more than answered. Ohio State loaded the bases and got their first run when catcher Mason Eckelman was hit by a pitch.
The first baseman Ryan Miller then knocked in two runs with a single. Center fielder Reggie Bussey then brought in two more runs with a double to make the score 5-1, Buckeyes. A wild pitch then brought in designated hitter Nick Giamarusti. Third baseman Maddix Simpson then brought Bussey home to cap the scoring for the Buckeyes in their seven-run first inning!
BOTTOM 1 | A two-RBI double from @regbus2 extends the Buckeye lead, 5-1!#GoBucks pic.twitter.com/IWPQmEVgRz
— Ohio State Baseball (@OhioStateBASE) March 18, 2025
In the second inning, left fielder Matthew Graveline would knock in shortstop Lee Ellis, to make the score 8-1. Then, in the fourth inning, Trey Lipsey brought the highlight of the night with an inside-the-park home run.
The Redhawks would show signs of life with two runs in the fifth inning to cut the lead to six. But Reggie Bussey hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the fifth to make it 12-3, Ohio State.
Miami's pitching helped the Buckeyes again in the sixth, as they walked in two more runs. (The Redhawks pitching walked in two Buckeye runs, and two more scored off of wild pitches in this game.) Miami would get two in the seventh inning and two in the ninth, but Ohio State would hold on to its lead to get the 14-7 win.
Ohio State got a much-needed win behind the six RBIs from Reggie Bussey. The Buckeyes will now travel to Iowa City this weekend to take on the Hawkeyes. Iowa is third in the Big Ten (tied with Indiana and Penn State), while the Buckeyes are currently at the bottom. Iowa is an 11-8 facing a 6-12 team in Ohio State. But 6-12 is better than 5-13.