On an exciting and upset-filled first day of the 2023 G-MAC Baseball Tournament at Prasco Park in Mason, Ohio, the Hillsdale College baseball team authored its own dramatic finish.
Batting in the bottom of the ninth in a 6-6 ballgame against fifth-seeded Findlay, the fourth-seeded Chargers won in walk-off fashion to advance thanks to a clutch single to centerfield by junior Jeff Landis.
Landis drove in Passinault, who led off the inning with a walk, and reached second on a sacrifice bunt by Lewis Beals. Findlay chose to intentionally walk All-G-MAC first teamer Will Shannon to create a potential double play scenario with one out, but had no choice but to pitch to Landis, who made the Oilers pay with a base hit.
The walk-off was the end of a wild game that saw Hillsdale rally from a 3-0 deficit in the top of the first inning to take a late lead, only to see the Oilers battle back to tie and threaten extra innings before Landis' walk-off hit sealed the victory.
After giving up a three-run home run in the top of the first, Hillsdale got a run back in the bottom of the inning on a RBI double by Shannon, then closed the gap in the bottom of the third on a sacrifice fly by Landis to score Passinault.
Findlay extended the lead again with a run in the top of the sixth, but Shannon homered in the bottom of the inning to cut the Oilers' advantage to 4-3, then got what appeared to be the game-changing hit in the bottom of the eighth, as Jaekob Sallee hit a three-run triple with the bases loaded and two outs to give Hillsdale a 6-4 edge.
While the Chargers couldn't hold the lead in the ninth, Hillsdale turned a clutch double play to end the top of the inning, prevent Findlay from taking the lead, and creating the scenario for Landis' game-winning hit.
Shannon had a huge game for the Chargers, going 3 for 4 with the double, the home run and two RBIs, and Nate Waligora went 2 for 4 as well at the plate for the Chargers, who outhit the Oilers 9 to 5 in the victory.
On the mound, starter Will Gifford rebounded nicely from that early three-run home run, giving up just two hits and an additional earned run the rest of the way and pitching seven innings with 10 strikeouts and two walks to give the Chargers a chance to rally. Dillon Manion pitched a scoreless inning of relief for Hillsdale, and closer Zane Barnhart pitched the ninth for the Chargers, earning his fifth victory of the season in relief.
The Chargers improve to 26-24 overall with the victory, and are now guaranteed a .500 or better finish to the season for the first time since 2016. Hillsdale was one of just two higher-seeded teams to advance on the first day of the G-MAC Tourney, as both second-seeded Trevecca Nazarene and third-seeded Ashland fell victim to upsets in the morning. The Chargers will look to stay in the winner's bracket on Thursday with a contest against top-seeded Northwood, the G-MAC regular season champions, at 2:30 p.m. at Prasco Park.
Photo by Steve George