Cedarville (14-16, 11-11 G-MAC) at Hillsdale College (15-17, 11-13 G-MAC) | 1:00 p.m. ET Friday, April 30 | Simpson Field – Hillsdale, Michigan | Live Stats
Cedarville (14-16, 11-11 G-MAC) at Hillsdale College (15-17, 11-13 G-MAC) | 4:00 p.m. ET Friday, April 30 | Simpson Field – Hillsdale, Michigan | Live Stats
Cedarville (14-16, 11-11 G-MAC) at Hillsdale College (15-17, 11-13 G-MAC) | 1:00 p.m. ET Saturday, May 1 | Simpson Field – Hillsdale, Michigan | Video | Live Stats
Cedarville (14-16, 11-11 G-MAC) at Hillsdale College (15-17, 11-13 G-MAC) | 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday, May 1 | Simpson Field – Hillsdale, Michigan | Video | Live Stats
Preview
The Hillsdale College baseball team went 1-3 against a tough Tiffin team on the road last week and now face a critical series with Cedarville at home this weekend. The Chargers could finish as high as 5th in the G-MAC or fall out of the conference tournament entirely depending on the outcome of the next two weeks' worth of games.
At 11-11 in the G-MAC, Cedarville is just ahead of Hillsdale in the conference standings and the Chargers could jump the Yellow Jackets with a strong showing this weekend.
Cedarville has been a middle-of-the-pack team both in hitting and in pitching this year in the G-MAC, but have proven to be a tough out, taking a game off of second-place Kentucky Wesleyan and third-place Walsh already this year.
Sophomore infielder Lucas Rotello is having an excellent year at the plate to lead the Yellow Jackets, batting .404 with a team-high eight doubles and 25 RBIs. Junior infielder Payton Eeles (.342) and sophomore infielder Blais Haile (.320) are both hitting north of .300 as well for Cedarville.
On the mound, senior Noah Schleinitz has been the Yellow Jackets' most effective starter, going 3-2 with a 4.01 ERA and a team-high 62 strikeouts. Seniors Trace Gillis and and Drew Minnich and junior Noah Cline are the other regular starters for Cedarville, and Reid Hale has been the Yellow Jackets' most effective reliever with a 2.70 ERA, 19 strikeouts and two saves in 10 appearances.
Hillsdale continues to be one of the top power teams in the conference offensively. The Chargers have three of the 11 players in the G-MAC with six or more home runs – senior Rob Zurawski and sophomores Aidan Brewer and Jeff Landis, and Landis is second in the G-MAC with 11, including three grand slams. In total, 10 of the 15 players who have made plate appearances for the Chargers in 2021 have hit at least one home run, and nine have at least two. sophomores Nick Stepke and Danny Passinault are batting .330 and .318, respectively, as well for the Chargers.
On the mound, the Chargers return every pitcher that started a game for Hillsdale in 2020, including fifth-year senior and ace Andrew Verbrugge, who's chasing several all-time pitching records for the Chargers in his final year on the mound.
Junior David Toth gives the Chargers a second ace-caliber starter. Toth leads the G-MAC with 70 strikeouts in eight starts, and threw the program's first no-hitter in at least 23 years against Maryville on the first day of the season. Sawyer Allen and James Krick have been dependable starters as well, and sophomore Will Gifford has been impactful as a reliever, winning two games and adding another save in six appearances this season.