After sweeping its rival in the final series of the regular season, the Ohio State baseball team was held scoreless in an elimination game against Michigan, 3-0 at the Big Ten tournament May 21.
Starter Gavin Kuzniewski threw 122 pitches in 7⅔ innings, giving up two earned runs and recording six strikeouts.
For however good Kuzniewski was, Michigan freshman starting pitcher Shane Brinham had the edge. He shut down the Buckeyes’ offense by setting a career high in strikeouts (11) in a complete game shutout.
Kuzniewski’s lone trouble came in the third inning when he walked two batters in a row, then hit the next Wolverine he faced, Brayden Jefferis. Michigan catcher Noel Miller then sent a line drive to right-center field, which plated two runs. It was the only hit Kuzniewski gave up.
Kuzniewski then settled, retiring the next 15 batters he faced. He left the game with two outs in the seventh inning. Even Michigan’s third base coach appeared to compliment Kuzniewski after he was pulled off the mound.
Miller came through with another RBI single to give Michigan an 8-0 lead heading into the ninth. The Buckeyes, who outhit Michigan 5-to-2, stranded all of their runners and failed to break Brinham.
The Buckeyes end their season with a 30-25 record, an 18-game improvement from last season.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State baseball ends Big Ten tourney run with 3-0 loss to Michigan
Reporting by Dan Aulbach, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
