The Tigers of West Liberty (1-2) picked up their first win of the season against cross-county foe Benjamin Logan (1-1), 3-2, on Saturday, April 4, at noon.
In a game that was forced out of Ben Logan due to rain and field conditions, the Tigers and Raiders opted to meet up in West Liberty to ensure the game between the two schools could be played.
Isaac Sertell for the Tigers did it all as the starting pitcher and as the leadoff batter for the orange and black. He spun five innings of two-run baseball, while also providing two doubles at the plate as a hitter.
The Raiders’ starting pitcher, Micah Gregg, was equally impressive on the mound, striking out seven of the first nine batters faced. He toed the mound for four innings of three-hit baseball.
The Raiders struck first in the third inning after Cayden Brown was driven in by an Adam Tinsman RBI Single. The Tigers’ defense responded well, corralling a deep fly to center field to stop the damage at one for the inning.
Benjamin Logan Sophomore #24 Adam Tinsman holds a West Liberty Tiger #5 Dallas Koons on first base during Saturdays 3-2 West Liberty win. (PRESTON SHIELDS | THE CHRONICLE)
Immediately, the Tigers responded with one of the two Sertell doubles, and scored on a Dallas Koons single one batter later to knot the game at one a piece heading into the fourth inning.
The score did not remain tied for long, as in the next inning, the Raiders capitalized on a Tigers passed ball to advance the runners to second and third. A Carrick Spriggs sac fly to bring in Gavin Riedmiller, making the score 2-1 in favor of the Raiders.
The fifth inning saw the Tigers pull ahead for good. The duo of Sertell and Koons took advantage of the pitching change; the inning saw a string of three straight hits with two outs to pull ahead 3-2.
Tiger Reece Oder hit the game-winning RBI triple in the fifth inning to put the stripes ahead.
In the fifth, the Raiders had an opportunity to strike back, with two outs, a double was roped off the bat of Soli Hughes to give the Raiders a shot at extras. A deep fly to center was caught by a Tiger center fielder to halt all momentum and close the game at 3-2 and allowing the Tigers to walk away victorious for the first time in 2026.
West Liberty is back in action on Monday against Triad (1-1) at home, while the Raiders travel to North Union (1-3) on Monday.
