Box score: Grand Valley State 5, Hillsdale 3
Playing its first GLIAC Tournament game in 13 years, the Hillsdale College baseball team hung tough with the top seed and regular season conference champion Grand Valley State University Lakers before falling 5-3.
The Chargers will now face Ashland in an elimination game at 10:30 a.m. Friday at Grady's Field in Xenia, Ohio.
After falling behind 3-0 in the first inning, the Chargers came back with a run in the second and two more in the third to tie it up. The score remained 3-3 until the sixth, when the Lakers scored once, before adding one more in the eighth inning. Hillsdale is now 30-21 on the season while GVSU improved to 32-15-1.
The player who had the biggest impact on the game from the Laker point of view was second baseman Josh Smith. He made two spectacular leaping catches of line drives, one of which he turned into a 4-6 double play that ended a two-on, no-out Charger threat. He also made several other diving plays in the hole at second base to turn would-be Charger hits into outs.
Hillsdale starting pitcher Will Kruse turned in a very effective effort, shutting out the Lakers over the final five innings he threw, recording two strikeouts. Kruse gave up three extra-base hits in the first inning but settled down nicely, locating his pitches well while forcing the Lakers to swing at his pitches, not vice versa. Kruse went six total innings with four earned runs allowed.
Senior Jacob Gardner tossed the final two innings and didn't allow an earned run.
Offensively, junior Ethan Wiskur led the way by going 2-for-4 with a double and 2 RBI. Wiskur doubled to center field to get Hillsdale on the board in the second inning. Senior Connor Bartlett led the team with three hits in his first postseason game, adding a run batted in.
Senior Luke Ortel, the GLIAC Player of the Year, banged out two singles and scored once, while senior Tad Sobieszczanski was 2-for-5 with a run scored. Senior Joe Gentile added two hits, as the Chargers outhit the Lakers 12-9 in the contest.
PHOTO CREDIT: Brad Monastiere