While newly christened as the No. 24 team in Division III baseball in by D3baseball.com, the John Carroll baseball team had a tough day at Schweickert Field. No. 8 Heidelberg cruised to a sweep of the Blue Streaks in an Ohio Athletic Conference baseball doubleheader.
 
At the back end of a difficult stretch due to weather, the Blue Steaks played their third doubleheader in four days on Monday. As a result, the JCU pitching staff struggled to find its groove, while a well-rested Heidelberg squad used a pair of dominant pitching performances to hold JCU at bay.

Simply put, the John Carroll tanks appeared to be on empty.
 
Following the 6-0 and 17-2 losses, the Blue and Gold drop to 19-8 overall, 8-4 in OAC play. The Student Princes advance to 21-5, 9-3 against OAC opponents.
 
Game One
Heidelberg 6, John Carroll 0
 
Arms are at a premium. One team started the top closer in the Ohio Athletic Conference. The other started a freshman with 3 2/3 innings of work on the year. You could not tell the difference for the first two innings.
 
Freshman Jake Servidio matched Heidelberg sophomore Derek Hendrixson pitch-for-pitch through two innings.
 
In the end Heidelberg would take game one 6-0.
 
Servidio cruised through the first inning recording three fly ball outs. The right-hander would be just as impressive in the second flashing the leather on the comebacker and ending the frame with a strikeout.
 
T.J. Harkness recorded the game's first hit in the top of the third. The right fielder crushed a two-out double to right center to plate Adam Hershberger. Hershberger had reached base via a one-out error.
 
Two leadoff walks in the fourth led to a pair of runs for the Student Princes who pushed their lead to 3-0 as Steven Morse sailed a grounder under Tyler Gentile's outstretched glove allowing both runs to score.
 
The walk theme continued in the fifth inning as Heidelberg loaded the bases to start the frame on three straight walks. Tyler Ferretti limited the damage to two runs inducing a 4-6-3 double play to get out of the frame.
 
Ferretti, a senior, fired a career-high five innings of relief. The right-hander allowed one run on five hits with three strikeouts.
 
John Carroll recorded its best offensive threat in the bottom of the ninth. Bobby Sabatino led off the inning with a bunt and advanced to third when Gentile clubbed a double down the left field line. However, John Carroll could not push a run across the plate.
 
Heidelberg added an insurance run in the ninth inning on Evan Long's two-out single.
 
Servidio fell to 0-2 with the loss. The freshman allowed five runs (three earned) on two hits in four-plus innings of work.
 
Game Two
Heidelberg 17, John Carroll 2
 
Things went from bad to worse for the Blue Streaks in game two on Tuesday. The Heidelberg offense exploded in the second half of the twinbill, burying JCU with a big sixth inning burst.
 
Heidelberg opened the scoring by tabbing four runs in the second inning. Alex Grove punched a single through the right side of the infield to plate the game's first run. Two more runs came in to score on the play after a Blue Streak error. Adam Hershberger made it a four-run game lacing a single up the middle.
 
John Carroll halved the lead in the third inning. David Crowley extended the inning reaching on an error. The play allowed Jacob Schriner, who single to lead off the inning, to score. Gentile added a single to right center to bring in Rob Cifelli.
 
Heidelberg added two runs in the fifth inning. Derek Hug drilled a one-out homer to right to start the rally. Christina Verde would add a one-out single two batters later. John Carroll would roll the 4-6-3 twin killer to get out of the jam.
 
The Student Princes kept off the offensive pressure breaking the game wide open with a 10-run sixth inning. The big inning made the score 16-2.
 
Heidelberg tacked on another run in the ninth to make the final score 17-2.