Schedule
Saginaw Valley St. (21-9, 10-3 GLIAC) Hillsdale College (12-18, 7-9 G-MAC) | 6 p.m. ET Wednesday, April 10 | TFO Partners Field at Lenda and Glenda Hill Stadium – Hillsdale, MI
Malone (4-28, 1-16 G-MAC) Hillsdale College (12-18, 7-9 G-MAC) | 1 p.m. ET Friday, April 12 | TFO Partners Field at Lenda and Glenda Hill Stadium – Hillsdale, MI
Malone (4-28, 1-16 G-MAC) Hillsdale College (12-18, 7-9 G-MAC) | 4 p.m. ET Friday, April 12 | TFO Partners Field at Lenda and Glenda Hill Stadium – Hillsdale, MI
Malone (4-28, 1-16 G-MAC) Hillsdale College (12-18, 7-9 G-MAC) | 1 p.m. ET Saturday, April 13 | TFO Partners Field at Lenda and Glenda Hill Stadium – Hillsdale, MI
Malone (4-28, 1-16 G-MAC) Hillsdale College (12-18, 7-9 G-MAC) | 4 p.m. ET Saturday, April 13 | TFO Partners Field at Lenda and Glenda Hill Stadium – Hillsdale, MI
Links
Hillsdale Roster | SVSU Roster | Malone Roster | 2024 Hillsdale Stats | 2024 SVSU Stats | 2024 Malone Stats | G-MAC Standings | G-MAC Stats
Preview
Hillsdale got the job done on the road this past weekend, taking three of four games from Lake Erie to get back in the mix in the race for a G-MAC Tournament spot. Next up for the Chargers is an exciting and important week at home that includes the Chargers' first-ever home night game in program history, as well as an important opportunity to make a move up the standings in a series against Malone on Friday and Saturday.
Hillsdale will play under the lights on Wednesday night for a home midweek contest against Saginaw Valley State. It's the third meeting this season between Hillsdale and SVSU after the two teams split a pair of games in University Center in March.
SVSU is off to a phenomenal start this season that includes a 21-9 overall record and a GLIAC-leading 10-3 mark that has the Cardinals dreaming of their first NCAA Tourney bid since 2006-07. The Cardinals bring back a prolific and experienced lineup led by returning All-Region honoree Colin Cornwell, who hit .342 with 46 RBIs and 16 doubles last season. All-GLIAC hitters Jaccar Watkins and Austin Schweiger also return, with both Schweiger and Cornwell off to great starts, along with infielder Hayden Jatczak, who's hitting .457 with 15 doubles, eight home runs and 47 RBIs, and outfielder Reed Raymond, who's hitting .404 with 31 RBIs.
On the mound, the Cardinals return ace and 2023 All-Region honoree Tyler McLaren, who's 4-1 with 33 strikeouts in seven starts, as well as senior right-hander Steven Hecht, another returning starter from last season. Redshirt freshman Chase Raymond is 5-1 for SVSU with a 4.09 ERA as well, and Jatczak has been the Cardinals' best, with a no-hitter on his resume and a perfect 4-0 record with a 1.72 ERA in six starts as well. Out of the bullpen, closer Reed Raymond returns in 2024, while JJ Arbini, Nick Bastian, Ben Kochany and Ryan Adams also get frequent work for SVSU. With a midweek game, SVSU should rest its usual starters, with Arbini, sophomore Jackson Decker and senior Christopher Schmees all candidates to get the assignment.
Hillsdale then hosts a four-game series against a struggling Malone team that's more dangerous than its 4-28 record overall and 1-16 record in G-MAC games indicates on Friday and Saturday. Saturday also will be Alumni Day for the Chargers as Hillsdale welcomes back past baseball greats to the new stadium.
Malone may be on a 10 game losing streak, but six of their 16 losses in conference play have come by two runs or less. The Pioneers do have a decent offense, led by seniors Jake Aleman and J.C. Philippi. Aleman is hitting .305 with a team-best 17 RBIs, while Philippi leads Malone with a .343 average and 12 extra base hits. Seven lineup regulars are batting over .300 for Malone, including senior infielder Devin Brown and the Pioneers' top home run hitter, junior Zach Flohr.
Pitching has been a problem point for the Pioneers this year, as the staff has a 7.87 combined ERA. Josh Salinas has been Malone's top starter, with a 4.30 ERA and a 1-3 record in six appearances. Jackson Phelps, Ayden Hall and Jacob Rollyson round out the starting rotation for the Pioneers, while Gage Faraguna, Michael Paljich, TJ Curry and Cadyn Smith are all regularly deployed relievers for Malone so far this season. Faraguna has the Pioneers' lone save in 2024.
The Chargers entered 2024 with significant holes to fill in the lineup, but returned many of their best hitters from 2023, led by returning All-Region first baseman Will Shannon, who is batting .405 so far in 2024 with a 1.262 OPS that ranks second in the G-MAC, and recently won G-MAC Player of the Week honors. Hillsdale also returned two of the top three home run hitters in program history in seniors Jeff Landis and Joe Hardenbergh, both of whom are off to strong starts, as well as two additional rock-solid four-year starters in centerfielder Danny Passinault and catcher Jaekob Sallee. Sallee earned G-MAC Player of the Week for his performance in the Cal (PA) series earlier this season and has continued to hit with power so far.
Along with this veteran core a mix of returning players and a strong freshman class will compete for playing time. Already, freshmen Tyler Turner, Rocco Tenuta, Will Millard and Aaron Jasiak have become lineup regulars, while junior Kaden Nowak has also carved out a significant role in the infield and Zak Kent has played significant time in the outfield as well..
On the mound, Hillsdale is looking for more consistency from a young group that showed promise early but has been up and down over the last month, with strong series against Tiffin and Lake Erie, but struggles at Trevecca Nazarene. Returning starter Tommy MacLean and freshman Daniel Higdon nailed down two starting spots early, while veterans Drew Olssen and Paul Brophy have also earned starting nods with their play over the last month. There's talent in this group but continued improvement will be necessary to get the Chargers back to the G-MAC Tournament
In the bullpen, Hillsdale may have found a closer in junior Andrew George, who has three saves and a win in nine appearances this season, while Brandon Scott also has three saves for the Chargers as well. Chad Stevens and Devin Murray are also frequently deployed bullpen arms for the Chargers, while redshirt freshman Logan McLaughlin has impressed in four appearances and may be working his way into a larger role for Hillsdale moving forward.
As mentioned, the Chargers split a pair of games with Saginaw Valley State on the road on March 12 and 13 earlier this year, winning an 18-17 thriller and also falling 10-4. Wednesday will be the rubber match between the two teams for the season. Meanwhile, Hillsdale is 16-11 against Malone since 2013, and has gone 3-1 against the Pioneers in each of the last three series, including taking the season series last year with 7-3, 10-0 and 11-4 victories.
Photo by Reva Ludwig