COLUMBUS, Ohio — Seth Lonsway woke up Saturday and ate a normal breakfast.
The left-hander said he didn’t do anything crazy or different in his warm-up routine as he readied himself to start Game 1 of the doubleheader against Indiana, which sat tied for second in the Big Ten standings entering the game.
Seven innings later, Lonsway piled a career-high 17 strikeouts in his complete game, one punch-out shy of the Buckeyes program record for a seven-inning game set by right-hander Bill Gable in 1963.
“Each week I kind of prepare the same. It’s building that mindset, building that preparation each week,” Lonsway said. “It’s all the same. The preparation builds the confidence. I was feeling good in the pen. I was prepared, and I was ready.”
Lonsway didn’t even know he threw an immaculate inning during the second frame, and it would’ve taken a keen eye for anyone in the ballpark to know as the lefty fired nine pitches - all for strikes - for three strikeouts. Each of the first six Hoosiers went down on strikes.
Entering the day, Lonsway held an 0-3 record with a 5.23 earned-run average, and had walked at least three batters in each of his four starts. He allowed three runs in his last outing against Iowa on March 27, striking out a season-low four batters over five innings.
“Seth didn’t pitch the way he wanted to last weekend. I think there’s a part of it that Seth Lonsway was like ‘I’m 0-3, I’m better than that,’ and I think he locked in in his preparation this week,” head coach Greg Beals said. “He took care of business. He made sure that we got the win today.”
After the Buckeyes’ 9-3 loss Monday to Maryland, the team lingered in left field grouped in a circle, centered around Beals. Lonsway said Beals’ message was like a mental check, and after preparing himself for an improved outing, the lefty said he locked in after striking out the side in the first inning.
“I kind of press the reset button each week. Kind of build that preparation, build that confidence from the start,” Lonsway said. “From the first inning, I felt confident that I was gonna command the ball well and pound the zone. I was constantly thinking getting strike one on the board. That first inning felt good, found my groove and just kept rolling with it.”
According to Burke Granger of D1Baseball.com, Lonsway’s fastball sat in the 90-92 mph range while his heralded hooking-curveball buckled hitters at around 77-80 mph.
Sophomore right fielder Mitchell Okuley, who recorded the lone flyball putout in the seventh inning, said it was fun to play behind such a performance.
“Lonsway was great. You know he’s got all the stuff to beat anybody, and when he’s on, he’s on,” Okuley said. “I mean, today was one of the best performances I’ve seen from a pitcher in college baseball. You could tell he just brought a lot of energy to the team as a whole”
Junior shortstop Zach Dezenzo, who turned the only groundball putout on a 4-6-3 double play in the fourth inning, said Lonsway’s performance was unbelievable from his vantage point behind him.
“Seth was absolutely lights out. I think everybody that was in the ballpark knew that,” Dezenzo said. “That kid prepares and works his butt off, so I wasn’t even surprised, to be honest. He deserves that and he is very capable of doing that every start, every time out. I’m excited to see him continue to work on that and continue to grow on that moving forward.”
The first five hitters in the Hoosiers batting order boasted batting averages of over .304. Indiana’s three-through-six hitters each had at least six doubles this season.
Beals said the key for Lonsway was throwing his fastball for strikes, forcing Indiana to respect the sharp breaking ball. Lonsway credited his catcher, senior Archer Brookman with whom he’s built a “really, really good relationship,” for helping him prepare for his latest test.
“It was a huge factor. Great team over there. I had to bring it, had to have my best stuff,” Lonsway said. “I wanted to put my team in the best position to win the game. It was definitely a factor as far as preparing for this weekend and getting ready to play a good ball team.”
The Celina, Ohio, native said his mother, father, niece and some cousins were in attendance for his gem.
Upon completing the game, Lonsway raised his arms in delight following the final out - of course, a swinging strikeout.
“It’s great. I love getting in front of our home fans and getting the crowd,” Lonsway said. “Definitely feed off of their energy and their vibe in the stands. It’s a lot of fun pitching here. I really enjoy having my family here and being able to play in front of them.”
