Moeller Takes Control Late, Drops Butler 4-2

VANDALIA — The Aviators honored decades of Butler baseball before first pitch — and for five innings, nearly delivered the kind of welcome-back gift that would’ve echoed through the alumni crowd for years.

Everything about Saturday night felt elevated.

The lights. The noise. The crowd of over 1,500. It was No. 1 vs. No. 1 — Division III’s top-ranked Butler against Division I powerhouse Moeller — and for most of the night, the margin was as tight as the tension in the air.

Moeller struck first with a solo homer in the second, a no-doubt shot to left that emptied the Crusaders dugout for a thunderous celebration.

But Hunter Richardson didn’t rattle. The senior southpaw settled in, striking out four over three innings and navigating out of trouble to keep it a one-run game.

And in the third, the Aviators answered.

Tate Richardson drew a walk. Hunter Richardson followed with a line drive single. And with two outs, Koby Dues delivered a little thunder of his own— a two-run double into the left-center gap that gave Butler a 2–1 lead and sent the home crowd surging.

Dues would finish 2-for-2 with both RBIs and reached base in all three plate appearances. Hunter Richardson went 1-for-2 and scored a run. Jackson Schilling added a single and worked a walk.

Defensively, the Aviators played clean — no errors, no panic.

Mason Reckner took the mound in the fourth and kept Moeller in check with two no-hit innings and three strikeouts. He worked fast, challenged hitters, and passed off a one-run lead to the bullpen in the sixth.

But that’s where Moeller found its opening.

A leadoff single, a walk, and back-to-back run-scoring plays pushed across three runs and turned a 2–1 Butler lead into a 4–2 Moeller advantage — and that was the difference.

Butler mounted one last push, bringing the tying run to the plate in the sixth. But in a game like this, there’s little room for missed chances.

Now, for the 23-2 Aviators it’s tournament time — and the road to Canal Park in Akron begins Wednesday versus Trotwood.

Survive. Advance. Repeat.