CLIPPERS CLIMB THROUGH THE AIR
SALINEVILLE OH- Columbiana caught fire late and ran away with it, dropping 18 runs on Southern in a big road win Wednesday.
The Clippers trailed early after Southern scraped together a few runs in the first two innings, but the bats came alive in the fourth and never cooled off. A string of base hits, a dropped third strike, and some smart baserunning flipped the game, and Columbiana never looked back.
Liam McElwain led the charge at the plate, racking up four RBIs. He drove in one with a single in the fourth, walked in a run in the fifth, then put the exclamation point on things in the sixth with a two-run double.
The fifth was a mess for Southern, with Columbiana scoring five times on just two hits thanks to a couple hit-by-pitches, an error, and some timely swings. Then came the sixth—eight more runs piled on with four hits, a couple walks, and more pressure on the bases. Columbiana finished with 11 hits and forced 13 walks on the day.
On the bump, Sam Inboden went five innings to grab the win, striking out seven while allowing just two hits and a pair of earned runs. Dan Goehring came in to shut the door with a clean sixth, striking out two.
Four Clippers had multi-hit days, and they were a menace on the basepaths too—eight total stolen bags, with Conway and Lehnerd swiping a couple each. Southern had a few bright spots early but couldn’t keep pace once Columbiana’s lineup got rolling. The Clippers now head to Howland on Thursday, looking to keep that offensive momentum rolling.
