ATHENS, Ohio (Interstat) — Jackson Halter hit a grand slam in the first inning to power the Marshall Thundering Herd to a 5-2 win over the Ohio Bobcats on Wednesday, April 29, 2026, at Bob Wren Stadium.

Marshall improved to 20-24 overall, while Ohio dropped to 8-36.

Halter, batting fifth and playing right field, finished 2-for-4 with the home run and four RBIs. He entered the game mired in a 0-for-6 slump over his previous two contests after going 0-for-3 against Morehead State and 0-for-3 against Troy. His grand slam came with two outs in the top of the first inning after Evan Bottone doubled, Tyler Kamerer walked and AJ Havrilla walked to load the bases. Halter drove the first pitch he saw over the fence for a 4-0 lead. The inning also included a flyout from Cooper Hinson and a groundout by Oliver Service before Cleary Simpson struck out to end the frame.

Ohio answered in the bottom of the second. Wil Henson singled and stole second, then scored on a Tyler Stack single to right center to cut the deficit to 4-1. Stack stole second and advanced to third on a groundout but was left stranded.

The Bobcats pulled within 4-2 in the bottom of the third. Brady Alex doubled, Reese Harmon walked and Cam Boyd reached on a fielder’s choice that erased Alex at third. Henson walked to load the bases, and Dylan Shepherd was hit by a pitch to force in Harmon. Reliever Alex Caudill entered for Marshall starter Blaine Albright and got Tyler Stack to ground out, ending the threat.

Caudill was dominant in relief, pitching 2 1/3 innings without allowing a hit or a run, striking out three. He earned the win after taking over with one out in the third. Albright had started and went 2 2/3 innings, allowing two earned runs on three hits while striking out three. Hunter Richardson followed Caudill with 1 1/3 hitless innings, fanning one. Peyton Jackson tossed a scoreless eighth with two strikeouts, and Davis Gunn closed the ninth with a hitless inning and one strikeout.

Ohio used five pitchers in the loss. Starter Landon Price lasted only two innings, allowing five runs on two hits and three walks. Ethan Stewart followed with two scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out one. Aiden Cook struck out three in two hitless innings. AJ Dallmayer gave up an unearned run in the seventh after an error allowed Evan Bottone to score. Grant Wilson and Dillon Masters each pitched a scoreless inning to close it.

Marshall added an unearned run in the top of the seventh. Bottone walked, advanced to second on a walk to Kamerer, moved to third on a double-play groundout and scored when Havrilla reached on a third-base error. The Thundering Herd managed only six hits in the game, with Bottone and Kamerer each reaching multiple times. Ohio had five hits, with Alex, Henson, Stack, Shepherd and Harmon each collecting one.

The victory avenged a 5-3 loss at home to Ohio on March 31. Marshall had lost four of its previous five games entering Wednesday, including a 9-6 defeat at Morehead State the previous day. Ohio had lost seven of its last eight, with the lone win coming April 18 at Central Michigan.

Marshall will play a three-game series at James Madison beginning Friday. Ohio travels to Massachusetts for a three-game set starting Friday.

Interstat’s game simulator projected a final score of Marshall 4, Ohio 2. Interstatl’s ELO system had given Marshall a 72.50 percent probability to win.