CANTON -- The Malone University baseball team opened up a weekend Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) series with the Ohio Dominican University Panthers at home on Friday afternoon. 

The Pioneers (17-27, 8-18 G-MAC) scored a walk-off 4-3 win in the opener.

The Panthers (18-26, 9-17 G-MAC) responded with a 5-2 win in the second game to even the seriest at one game each. 

Game 1 Highlights
Bryce Layton surrendered a run on a bases loaded walk in the second inning that put ODU on top 1-0, but got a flyout to end the inning and limit the damage. 

Andrew Hanna led off the bottom half of the third inning with a single. A few batters later Cameron Martin came through with a single down the third base line that scored Hanna to tie the game.

In the very next at bat Jake Aleman's RBI groundout brought home Tyson Gingerich, and allowed the Pioneers to take a 2-1 lead. 

After Layton retired the Panthers in order in the fourth, Hanna executed a perfect safety squeeze bunt in the bottom half of the inning to plate JC Philippi and put MU up 3-1. 

Unfortunately ODU scored a pair of runs on three hits in the top of the fifth to even the game at 3-3. 

At that point the game settled into a stalemate with neither team getting any runs on the board over the next four innings. 

Nate Plack, who had entered from the bullpen back in the fifth, had ODU's hitters well off balance. Unfortunately the Panther pitchers were matching him zero for zero. 

The game moved into extra innings where Plack once again retired the side in the tenth, inlcuding striking out the final two batters. 

The Pioneers loaded the bases in the bottom of the inning on back-to-back walks by JT Tonelli and Jake Aleman as well as a hit by pitch to JC Philippi. 

Boston Black stepped to the plate and worked the bases loaded walk to pick up his tenth RBI of the season. When Tonelli crossed the plate with the winning run it gave Malone their third walk-off win of the season.

Game 2 Highlights
Once again it was Ohio Dominican that got the scoring going, this time with a RBI single in the top of the first. 

However, the Pioneers wasted no time in answering. In the bottom of the first Tyson Gingerich stole home to tie the game at 1-1. 

ODU's double steal of both second base and home plate in the second again gave them a 2-1 advantage, but Evan Swan's RBI single in the fourth knotted things back up at 2-2. 

Unfortunately the Panthers took a 3-2 lead in the fifth, and then pushed their advantage out to 5-2 in the sixth. 

ODU then retired the Pioneers in order in the bottom of the seventh to pick up the game two win.

PIONEER POINTS

• Nate Plack pitched 5.0 innings in relief to earn the win in the first game. He struck out five batters, and allowed no runs to score. The victory is the first of his collegiate career.
• Tyson Gingerich was 4-8 at the plate, which helped push his season batting average up to a team-best .351. He scored two runs, and stole two bases. 
• Clayton Criss, Jake Aleman, and JC Philippi all had three hits on the afternoon for Malone. 

WHAT'S NEXT?
The two teams return to Thurman Munson Memorial Stadium tomorrow to wrap up the series with another doubleheader. 

First pitch is slated for 3:00 p.m.

In between the games: Braydan Billman, Chase Jessee, Weston Garman, Andrew Hanna, and Tyson Gingerich will all be honored as part of the Senior Day festivities.