April 23, 2011
Box Score (Game 1)
Box Score (Game 2)
Big Rapids, Mich. - Grand Valley State took three out of four games in its weekend series with West Michigan rival Ferris State, as the Lakers and Bulldogs split a pair of one-run games on Saturday (Apr. 23) in Big Rapids. Ferris State won the opener by a 3-2 tally before GVSU bounced back to win game two by a 5-4 count in 11 innings. The extra-inning victory was the longest game for the Lakers since Mar. 30, 2009, when Grand Valley State and Ferris State also battled in an 11-inning affair.
Friday's doubleheader between the same two teams saw GVSU win both contests, 11-4 and 6-5. With the split on Saturday, the Lakers are now 35-8 on the season and 21-5 in GLIAC play. Ferris State is 16-20 overall and 13-11 in league action this season. Two seasons ago when the same two teams went to 11 innings, FSU was the #6 ranked team in the nation and held off the Lakers, 3-2. The last time a Grand Valley State team played more than 11 innings was in the NCAA Great Lakes Region Tournament on May 12, 2007. On that date, GVSU knocked off Missouri-Rolla by a 5-4 count in 13 innings.
In the opening game on Saturday, the Lakers did not have a problem hitting FSU starting pitcher Dana Bowler (11-8), but GVSU just could not push the runners past home plate. Grand Valley State outhit the Bulldogs, 10-4, but in another oddity, all 10 base hits were singles. Ferris State scored the game's first run in the second inning on an RBI double and added two more runs in the sixth inning on a sacrifice fly and another run-scoring single. Heading into GVSU's last at-bat in the top of the seventh, the home Bulldogs led 3-0.
Shortstop Briauna Taylor started the frame with an infield single, which was immediately followed by a single from junior catcher Carli Raisutis to put runners at first and second. Both runners moved to third on a groundout and Taylor scored on Maggie Kerrigan's infield base hit to make the score 3-1. Brittany Taylor loaded the bases with a one-out single. Two batters later with the bases still juiced and two outs, sophomore Katie Martin also recorded an infield single, scoring Raisutis to cut the deficit to 3-2. However, the last out was made at home plate when Kerrigan attempted to score on a ball that went past the catcher, but the pitcher took the throw and tagged Kerrigan out at home, ending the game.
Junior Andrea Nicholson took the loss, despite pitching well in six innings in the circle. The righty falls to 16-2 on the year, although she only gave up three runs on four hits, while walking three batters and striking out four. It is her first loss since Mar. 7 against Wayne State (Neb.).
Raisutis was a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate and scored one of the team's two runs. Briauna Taylor scored the other run and went 2-for-3, while sister Brittany Taylor was 2-for-4. Martin and Kerrigan each collected an RBI.
Game two did not start off well for the Lakers, as Ferris State jumped out to a 3-0 lead with one run in the second inning and two more in the third. GVSU got a run back in the bottom of the fourth frame, when freshman Miranda Cleary singled down the right field line, scoring Briauna Taylor, who singled to start the inning.
Grand Valley State found itself down 4-1 in the bottom of the sixth inning after FSU added a run in the top of the frame. Briauna Taylor led off the bottom of the inning with a walk and scored on Martin's home run to left field, a two-run blast that brought the Lakers within a run at 4-3. It was Martin's 17th homer of the year, tying her with Cleary for the team lead and the Division II lead. That roundtripper also pushes Martin into second place all-time in Laker history with her 26th career home run, breaking a tie she held with former GVSU standout Elizabeth Smith (25 homers from 2005 to 2008).
Freshman Tonya Calkins followed Martin's dinger with a walk and Cleary then added a double to right center to put two runners on with nobody out. Calkins then scored on a sacrifice fly from sophomore Emily Jones to tie the game at 4-4, but Cleary was still at second base with two outs later in the inning. Sophomore Emily Holt singled to right field and Cleary attempted to score the go-ahead run, but was thrown out at the plate by the right fielder.
Neither team would score in the seventh, sending the game into extra innings. Ferris State had a runner on second base in the eighth inning, but Martin (who was in the circle for all 11 innings for GVSU) retired the next two batters to end the threat. After the Lakers went 1-2-3 in the eighth, FSU had runners on first and second with two outs in the ninth inning before Martin recorded a strikeout looking to end that scoring opportunity.
The Lakers again went down in order in the ninth, bringing the game to the 10th inning, where the international tiebreaker rule went into effect. Both teams would have a runner placed on second base to start the inning in an attempt to allow the teams to score a run more easily. This strategy did not work for either team in the 10th inning, as Martin worked out of the top of the inning and GVSU left a runner at third base in the bottom of the frame.
In the 11th inning, Martin again got out of trouble with a groundout and a lineout, leaving the Bulldogs' runner on third base. Jones moved Cleary to third base on a sacrifice bunt in the bottom of the 11th and sophomore Kayleigh Bertram laced a single through the left side of the infield to score Cleary for the game-winning run.
Not only did Martin move into second place on the career home run list at GVSU, she also tossed all 11 innings and earned the win, moving to 10-4 on the year. She scattered 13 hits and allowed just four runs. Martin walked three batters and struck out six, while also getting 14 flyouts and 11 groundball outs. She was 1-for-3 at the plate with the homer, a run, two RBI, and a pair of walks.
Cleary was 2-for-5 with a double, an RBI, and the game-winning run, while Briauna Taylor went 2-for-3 with two runs scored. Holt also had a multi-hit game, going 2-for-4 at the plate.
The Lakers will play a re-scheduled doubleheader on Thursday (Apr. 28) at 3:30 p.m. in Allendale when GVSU takes on Hillsdale. Grand Valley State and the Chargers split a GLIAC twinbill in Hillsdale on Apr. 13.
