Kent State’s baseball team had its back against the wall against Tiffin University, going into the bottom of the ninth inning as the Flashes faced a 7-5 deficit.

After a leadoff double by senior first baseman Tim Orr, and a walk by senior shortstop Michael McNamara, the Flashes had the winning run at the plate with no outs.

Freshman designated hitter Dom Kibler struck out for the first out, but freshman left fielder Bo Shinkle singled to load the bases.

The team was down to its last out after sophomore catcher Brody Williams struck out.

Back-to-back walks with two outs to junior right fielder Jake Casey, who walked on a full count, and redshirt freshman second baseman Ripken Reese tied the game at 7-7.

The next batter up was senior third baseman Kyle Jackson.

Jackson was 0-4 prior to the at-bat. He had one walk and one strikeout but scored when he got on base for the walk.

With the bases still loaded, Jackson took to the plate.

In a game where he was not producing much, Jackson left that behind and knocked the ball over the stands by the right field line, cashing in on his first home run of the season.

The walk-off home run brought in all four winning runs, and the Flashes left Schoonover Stadium as the victors in an 11-7 thriller over Tiffin Tuesday.

The Flashes may have had a big inning at the end of the game, but the team also got the scoring started early.

After a clean first inning of work by redshirt sophomore starting pitcher Rocco Bernadina, Kent State tallied a run when McNamara drove in redshirt senior center fielder Josh Johnson on a single to left field.

The single brought in McNamara’s eighth RBI of the season and his fifth in five games.

Kent State would never hold a lead for the rest of the game until the final at-bat.

Tiffin got to Bernadina in the second inning as the pitcher allowed a two-run home run.

The Flashes answered by tying the game in their half of the second inning.

Reese brought in Williams on a single to center field to make the score 2-2.

It was Reese’s only hit in a 1-4 day, but he had two RBIs and a walk to go with his single.

Tiffin pulled away with another two-run inning in the top of the third as Kent State pitching continued to struggle.

A sacrifice fly and an RBI double saw Kent State in a two-run hole as Tiffin gave themselves a 4-2 lead.

KSU was able to cut the lead in half when it was the team’s turn to hit.

Orr continued his hot streak with a solo home run – his fifth home run in 12 games, and his two total RBIs for the day give him a total of 13 for the season; both are the most on the team.

The bullpen kept Tiffin at bay for an inning before they capitalized and extended its lead by three runs.

It was 7-3 after an RBI fielder’s choice and a two-run single.

Kent State answered back by scoring a run in both the fifth and sixth innings, as they used a double steal to plate a run and an Orr RBI single to chip away at Tiffin’s lead.

The score was 7-5 going into the seventh inning.

After the sixth inning, KSU used four relief pitchers, and they kept Tiffin off the scoreboard until the Flashes’ big six-run ninth inning.

Player highlights

Bernadina started on the mound after appearing in three games out of the Flashes’ bullpen.

He had no wins or losses and a 7.20 ERA, along with three strikeouts and two walks.

His day was cut short, as the righty pitched for 2.2 innings, allowing four runs on four hits. He also struck out two and walked one batter.

Redshirt freshman reliever Gavin Jones was the pitcher of record and collected the win after pitching for 0.2 innings, allowing one hit and two strikeouts.

Jackson’s huge grand slam gave KSU the win, but key offensive contributions from Orr and Reese helped lead the way.

Orr had a 4-5 day, increasing his team-high batting average to .477, tied for No. 33 in the nation. His five home runs are tied for No. 42, as well.

The first baseman had a double, two singles, two RBIs and a stolen base to accompany his solo shot.

Reese had one hit in four at-bats. The hit was an RBI single in the second inning, but his second RBI was pivotal.

The only other time Reese reached base was with his walk with two outs in the ninth. The walk tied the game at 7-7, which set the plate for Jackson’s walk-off home run.

Looking ahead

The Flashes’ home streak continues as the victory is the team’s 15th consecutive win at Schoonover Stadium.

The streak continues from last season when the team dominated at Kent.

When playing at home last season, KSU was 22-1 during the regular season and had 14 wins where the Flashes put up 10 or more runs.

These wins included a 22-1 win against Youngstown State, a 21-3 win against Canisius, a 23-3 win against Akron and a 29-11 win against Ball State.

The team had a +177 point differential when playing at home, 34 home runs and a .362 batting average.

Kent State has won three out of the last four games and has improved its record to 4-8 on the season.

KSU jumped to fourth in the Mid-American Conference with the win.

On Friday, the team will open up a three-game slate with Central Michigan ending Sunday.

The Chippewas are ninth in the MAC with a 3-10 record.

Kent State will look to keep up its home-game dominance, as the next four games will be played in Schoonover Stadium.

John Hilber is assistant sports editor. Contact him at j[email protected].