EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The 22nd-ranked Grand Valley State baseball team is now the lone undefeated team remaining in the 2014 NCAA Division II Midwest Regional Tournament after defeating Wayne State, 7-2, on Friday (May 16) evening at the USI Baseball Field.
GVSU is now 39-11 overall on the year, while the Warriors fall to 36-16 overall. The Lakers will play the late game again on Saturday (May 17) at 8 p.m., taking on the winner of a Southern Indiana/Wayne State elimination game earlier in the day.
In another early-game rally, the Lakers picked up a quick 1-0 lead in the top of the first, as Mike Nadratowski singled to lead off the game then moved to third on a single through the right side of the infield by Kevin Zak. After Zak stole second, Giancarlo Brugnoni brought Nadratowski in with an RBI ground out to the middle of the infield.
The lead moved to 2-0 in the top of the second with a two-out push, as Taylor Banks doubled off a 2-0 pitch with two outs, then came in to score on an Eric Hess RBI single through the left side of the infield.
GVSU kept the single tallies going in the top of the third, as Jamie Potts led off with a double then scored with one out when a sharp ground ball to third base skipped past the fielder, allowing Potts to score and make it a 3-0 game.
Starter Evan Nietfeldt got out of a huge jam in the bottom of the fifth, as Wayne State loaded the bases with nobody out, but Nietfeldt was able to coax a 1-2-3 double play and a fly ball to right to escape with the 3-0 lead still intact.
The Lakers returned the favor of loading the bases with nobody out in the top of the seventh with three infield singles, one each by Nadratowski, Potts and Zak. However, the Warriors weren't so lucky in the result, as the man at the plate was Brugnoni, and he did what regional players of the year do, crushing a 1-0 slider over the left-center field wall for a grand slam and a 7-0 Laker lead.
Wayne State got one run back in the bottom of the seventh on a bases loaded hit by pitch, but GVSU got out of the jam with a 7-1 lead. The Warriors added another in the bottom of the eighth with an RBI groundout.
The Laker bullpen would hold the comfortable lead in the late innings, wrapping up the 7-2 victory.
Nietfeldt (9-1) picked up the victory on the mound, working 6.2 innings, allowing seven hits and one run with two strikeouts.
Brugnoni's five-RBI day led the Lakers, going 2-for-4 with one run, five RBI, and his 17th home run of the season, a grand slam. Nadratowski and Zak each went 3-for-5, with Nadratowski scoring twice and Zak once. Potts and Eisler each went 2-for-5 with a double, with Potts also scoring twice.
