March 26, 2011
Box Score (Game 1)
Box Score (Game 2)
Ashland, Ohio - Grand Valley State earned a split on Saturday afternoon (Mar. 26) in Ashland, Ohio, as the Lakers and Ashland each won a game in the doubleheader. In the opener, GVSU used a five-run fourth inning to come back from a 3-0 deficit and win 8-6, but the Eagles scored five runs in the seventh inning of game two to shock Grand Valley State by a 6-5 final.
It was a pivotal doubleheader for Grand Valley State and an important measuring stick for the young Lakers, as Ashland advanced to the regional championship game last season and returned its top two pitchers. GVSU entered the twinbill with an 11-game win streak and victories in 14 of its last 15 contests. The Lakers came from behind to win game one and almost pushed the winning streak to 13 straight games before Ashland's huge comeback in the final inning of game two. Grand Valley State is now 17-4 on the year, 3-1 in the GLIAC, while AU is 11-9 overall and 3-1 in league play.
Ashland opened up game one with a 3-0 lead after scoring a pair of runs in the first inning and another run in the second. The Lakers were held scoreless until the top of the fourth inning, when GVSU exploded for five runs off of Ashland's ace pitcher, Emlyn Knerem. With one out, sophomore Kayleigh Bertram singled up the middle and was pushed to third on a double to left center from sophomore Katie Martin. Freshman first baseman Tonya Calkins survived a great at-bat and on the 10th pitch of the sequence, she doubled to left field, scoring both runs and making the score, 3-2.
Two batters later, junior catcher Carli Raisutis doubled to center field, scoring Calkins and tying the game at 3-3. The next better, Briauna Taylor, homered to right field for an opposite field blast that put GVSU ahead for the first time by a 5-3 tally. In the fifth inning, the Lakers extended their lead on an RBI double from Brittany Taylor, which scored center fielder Nellie Kosola, who opened the inning with an infield single. Later in the frame, Taylor crossed home plate on a bases-loaded walk to Raisutis.
That gave GVSU a 7-3 lead, but Laker righthander Andrea Nicholson ran into some trouble in the bottom of the fifth inning. Nicholson was replaced by sophomore Hannah Santora, who gave up a run-scoring single to the first AU batter she faced. But she worked her way out of a huge jam as Ashland loaded the bases with one out. Santora coaxed a groundball for a force out at home and then got the final out on a strikeout looking.
It seemed that the Lakers rode that momentum into their next at-bat, as third baseman Miranda Cleary led off the sixth with a solo homer to left centerfield, giving Santora a little breathing room. It was the final run of the game, as Santora retired six straight batters to end the game, including a perfect 1-2-3 seventh inning. She earned the first save of her career, allowing no runs on two hits in three innings of relief. Santora walked two batters and struck out three Eagles. Nicholson earns the win and improves to 7-1 this season by allowing six runs (five earned) on eight hits in four innings. She also struck out three AU batters and recorded nine groundball outs.
Offensively, it was a total team performance, as eight Lakers recorded at least one base hit and eight different players scored the eight runs. Brittany Taylor went 2-for-2 with a double, an RBI, and a run scored, while Bertram was 2-for-4 with a run and a stolen base. Calkins, Raisutis, and Briauna Taylor all had two RBI apiece. Both teams totaled 10 base hits in the contest, while Ashland stranded nine runners on base.
The early part of game two was a pitcher's duel, as Ashland's Logan Hursey and Martin for GVSU allowed just four hits combined in the first three innings, with neither team crossing the plate. Martin retired the AU lineup in order in the fourth inning and then smashed her 12th homer of the season in the bottom of the fourth, a solo blast to left field for a 1-0 lead.
Ashland went hitless again in the fifth inning and the Lakers took a commanding 5-0 lead on the strength of a pair of two-out home runs. After the first two GVSU batters were retired, Martin connected on another long ball, this time a solo blast to center field that put the Lakers ahead 2-0. It was Martin's 13th home run this season, tying her for seventh-most homers in a single-season in the history of the conference. The baker's dozen of home runs gives Martin 22 bombs already in her career, moving her into ninth place all-time in GLIAC history. Martin ranks third on both GVSU's single-season and career lists for homers.
After consecutive walks to Calkins and Briauna Taylor, Cleary homered to right center field for a three-run roundtripper. The call was argued by Ashland that it did not clear the fence, instead that it went through the top of the breakaway fence in the outfield. It was to no avail, however, as the call stood and GVSU was on top, 5-0.
Martin cruised into the sixth, giving up just one run on a sacrifice fly. It wasn't until the seventh inning that things got interesting. After retiring the first batter, Martin allowed back-to-back singles and was pulled for Santora. The Eagles then used a walk and a two-run single to pull within 5-3. Hursey was up next and doubled to score a run and make the score 5-4. Santora induced a pop-up for the second out, but AU's Brianna Woody delivered a two-out, two-run single to center field to put the Eagles ahead, 6-5.
Despite the shocking comeback, Grand Valley State put itself in position to win in the bottom of the seventh. Holt singled with one out and was followed by a walk from junior Maggie Kerrigan. Two batters later, Brittany Taylor walked to load the bases with two outs. Bertram then grounded out to second base to end the game in a tough loss for the Lakers.
Santora (6-2) took the loss, giving up three runs on three hits in 0.2 innings of work. Martin pitched well for most of the game, striking out nine batters and allowing three runs on eight hits. She walked just one batter in 6.1 innings of work. At the plate, Martin was 2-for-2 with the two homers, two runs, and two RBI. Holt went 2-for-3 with a pair of singles, while Cleary drove in three runs with her sixth roundtripper of the year.
The Lakers conclude the Ohio weekend on Sunday (Mar. 27) with another doubleheader, this time against Lake Erie. GVSU and the Storm will square off in a noon start.
