Findlay (13-22, 11-17 G-MAC) at Hillsdale College (16-20, 12-16 G-MAC) | 1:00 p.m. ET Friday, May 7 | Simpson Field – Hillsdale, Michigan | Live Stats
Findlay (13-22, 11-17 G-MAC) at Hillsdale College (16-20, 12-16 G-MAC) | 4:00 p.m. ET Friday, May 7 | Simpson Field – Hillsdale, Michigan | Live Stats
Findlay (13-22, 11-17 G-MAC) at Hillsdale College (16-20, 12-16 G-MAC) | 1:00 p.m. ET Saturday, May 8 | Simpson Field – Hillsdale, Michigan | Live Stats
Findlay (13-22, 11-17 G-MAC) at Hillsdale College (16-20, 12-16 G-MAC) | 4:00 p.m. ET Saturday, May 8 | Simpson Field – Hillsdale, Michigan | Live Stats
Preview:
It's all down to this weekend for the Hillsdale College baseball team and its postseason hopes in 2021. A 2-2 or better record in the four-game series against visiting Findlay this Friday and Saturday will lock up a berth in the G-MAC Tournament. Go 1-3 or worse and the Oilers will pass the Chargers in the standings, almost certainly leaving them on the outside looking in.
Hillsdale also will host Senior Day on Saturday, honoring the program's four graduating seniors in their final home appearance: Andrew Verbrugge, Kolton Rominski, Rob Zurawski and Sawyer Allen. Due to resource limitations surrounding this weekend a live stream of the series will not be available, however, fans can follow along with the games at the live stats links above.
The Oilers' pitching has struggled this year, but a split with a tough Tiffin team last weekend has given Findlay a chance to vault into the conference tourney picture with a strong final weekend.
Sophomore infielder Cole Kwiatkowski is batting .331 with a team high 40 hits, 21 RBIs and 17 extra-base hits, including five home runs, while sophomore catcher Ryan O'Malley brings power to the Oilers' lineup with a team-high nine home runs and 28 RBIs.
Seniors Ethan St. Clair, Tyler Burley and Casey Gould are also batting north of .300 for Findlay.
On the mound, junior left-hander Anthony Kyle has been Findlay's most effective starter, posting a 3-2 record and a 3.99 ERA with 73 strikeouts in nine starts. Junior Ryan Mohr and sophomores Chase Hopewell and Tyler Trammell are the other regularly-deployed starters for the Oilers. The team has relied extensively on relief pitchers, with junior Bailey McCord going 5-0, junior Ben Calisto posting a team best 3.21 ERA in 13 appearances, and senior closer Jordan Bekier tallying six saves.
Hillsdale continues to be one of the top power teams in the conference offensively. The Chargers have two of the eight players in the G-MAC with eight or more home runs – sophomores Aidan Brewer and Jeff Landis, and Landis leads the G-MAC with 13, 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 six have at least four. Senior Rob Zurawski is batting a team-best .328 with nine doubles, six home runs and 23 RBIs for the Chargers, sophomores Danny Passinault and Nick Stepke are batting .323 and .310, respectively, as well for the Chargers, and sophomore Joe Hardenbergh is batting .287 with just the program's second three-home run game in the last decade against Cedarville last Saturday.
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 82 strikeouts in nine 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.