Northern (18-22, 9-9 OAC) collected a season-high 20 hits and scored six times in the final two innings to break a 6-6 tie and win game two 12-7. Marietta (21-18-13-5 OAC) won the opener 6-3.

Katana was a perfect 5-for-5 with a double, triple and four RBI in game two. He was 1-for-2 with a run scored in the first game.

Sophomores Greg Gibbons, Drew Robinson and freshman Mike Hoelzel each collected three hits in the second game. Gibbons scored four runs in the game while Robinson drove in three. Sophomore Brandon Hubbard and freshman Eric Stegman made it six Polar Bears with a multi-hit game as each had a pair of singles.

Senior Drew Wieland (5-5) picked up the win in his final game, going seven and a third innings, allowing six runs on 12 hits while striking out 10. Marietta’s Justin Merryman (3-5) took the loss in relief as he allowed six runs in two and a third innings.

ONU’s Brandon Aselage singled with one out in the top of the first and scored on Katana’s RBI double to stake Northern to an early 1-0 lead in game two.

The lead was short lived as Marietta scored two runs on four hits in the bottom of the first to take a 2-1 lead.

Each team plated a run in the second inning as Hubbard had an RBI single in the top half and Marietta’s Tom DeAngelis homered to left center for the home team in the bottom half.

The Polar Bears then regained the lead in the top of the third as Stegman singled home Katana and freshman Adam Grof to put ONU back in front 4-3.

The teams again traded runs in the fourth when Katana had an RBI single to score Gibbons for Ohio Northern and Merryman singled home Brennan Cribbins for Marietta.

The Pioneers then took back the lead in the fifth as they capitalized on two Polar Bear errors and scored a pair of runs to make the score 6-5 in favor of the home squad.

In the top of the sixth, Gibbons scored from second on a sacrifice fly to deep left off the bat of Robinson to even the game at 6-6.

The scored stayed that way until the eighth when Grof connected a huge one-out bases loaded single to right that scored Aselage and Gibbons to gave ONU an 8-6 lead.

In Marietta’s half of the eighth inning, Wieland loaded the bases with one out on a pair of walks and hit batter and then gave way to junior Brian Hill. Hill got Cimino to hit a chopper back to the mound that Hill threw home for second out of the inning. Casey Levens then hit a deep fly ball to center field that Hubbard ran down in the middle of the track to strand three Pioneer runners and preserve the two-run lead.

The Polar Bears rode that momentum into the top of the ninth where they put the game out of reach with four runs on two big blasts. Robinson had a bases loaded double that scored a pair and Katana followed with a two-run triple to clear the bases.

In game one, Marietta’s Cameron Cimino lofted a two-run home run down the right field line in the bottom of the first to give the Pioneers 2-0 lead.

ONU responded in the top of the second with back-to-back two-out RBI singles from Hoelzel and Hubbard to tie the game at 2-2.

Marietta broke the tie in the bottom of the fifth as the Pioneers took advantage of a Polar Bear error and scored four times on a pair of hits to take a commanding 6-2 lead.

ONU sophomore Loren Fleischman hit a sacrifice fly in the top of the seventh to score Hubbard, who had singled earlier in the inning, for the final tally.

Senior Mark Sankovich (8-3), pitching in his final game, took the loss, going all six innings and allowing six runs on five hits and five strikeouts. The complete game was Sankovich’s ninth of the season.

Chris Stewart improved to 6-2 on the season for Marietta as he relieved starter Tim Knowlton in the fifth inning. Stewart allowed just one run on four hits and three strikeouts.

The Polar Bears end the season with an even 9-9 record in the OAC. The last time ONU won nine games in the conference was in 2002. The 18 wins overall are also the most since 2004.