Grand Valley State split a road GLIAC doubleheader against conference rival Saginaw Valley State on Wednesday afternoon (Apr. 13) in University Center, Mich. After falling in the opener by a 7-0 final, the Lakers rebounded by blanking SVSU in the nightcap 2-0 behind a tremendous pitching performance.
 
GVSU freshman righthander Allison Lipovsky threw a complete game one-hitter in the nightcap and retired the final 13 batters she faced. The only offense she needed was a two-run homer from senior McKenze Supernaw in the fifth inning, earning the Lakers a solid road split against a tough SVSU team.
 
With the split, Grand Valley State is now 23-7 on the season and 8-4 in conference play. The Cardinals are 23-9 overall and 9-5 in GLIAC action.
 
In game one, SVSU opened the scoring in the second inning with back-to-back two-out hits, as a double was followed by a run-scoring single to give the Cardinals a 1-0 lead. Saginaw Valley State added two runs in both the third and fourth innings off of Laker starter Courtney Reinhold before she was replaced by senior Sara Andrasik.
 
The Cardinals added single runs in the fifth and sixth innings to make the score 7-0. GVSU loaded the bases with two outs in the top of the seventh inning, but Saginaw Valley State escaped the jam to preserve the shutout.
 
Grand Valley State's two hits came on a two-out single from junior Kelsey Dominguez in the second inning and a two-out single from Supernaw in the seventh frame. Dominguez was also hit by a pitch, as she reached base twice in the game.
 
Reinhold drops to 5-3 on the year with the loss. She allowed five earned runs on 10 hits in 3.2 innings in the circle. Andrasik gave up two runs on three hits in 2.1 innings of relief. Reinhold fanned two Cardinals, while Andrasik recorded four strikeouts.
 
SVSU's Sarah Appold moved to 6-3 with her complete game two-hitter, in which she tossed 109 pitches, walking two and striking out six.
 
Appold came out again in the circle for the Cardinals in game two, but the Lakers began to figure out the SVSU hurler. In the bottom of the first, sophomore Kaylie Rhynard and junior Jenna Lenza each singled with one out and junior Ellie Balbach walked to load the bases. However, Appold retired the next two Lakers to end the early threat.
 
GVSU again loaded the bases in the fourth inning after a leadoff double to left field from junior Janae Langs. Senior Chelsea Horvath worked a one-out walk and Rhynard was hit by a pitch with two outs. The inning ended on a lineout off the bat of Lenza, keeping the game scoreless.
 
In the fifth, Grand Valley State finally cracked the scoreboard off Appold. Balbach led off with a walk and was lifted for pinch runner Ali Vander Meer, who was able to trot around the bases when Supernaw crushed a two-run homer to left center field, putting the Lakers in front by a 2-0 score. It was Supernaw's third roundtripper of the year.
 
While Supernaw's home run was much-needed, the story of the game was Lipovsky. The rookie allowed just a two-out double in the third inning before retiring the next 13 Cardinal batters to finish the game. Lipovsky was rolling from the start of the contest, striking out the side in the opening inning and working around a harmless two-out walk.
 
She seemed to get stronger as the game went along, notching consecutive strikeouts in the fifth inning (one swinging, the next looking) and fielding a comebacker to end the stanza. In the sixth, Lipovsky notched a swinging punchout and a pair of groundballs back to her in the circle.
 
Heading to the seventh with a two-run lead, Lipovsky stayed dominant. She induced a pair of infield popups and struck out the final batter of the game on a looking strikeout. In all, Lipovsky had a direct hand in 11 of 21 SVSU outs, either by strikeout or making the out herself in the field.
 
Her official statline was seven innings, one hit, one walk, and seven strikeouts. Lipovsky is now 8-0 during her freshman campaign and owns a 0.97 earned run average. The seven K's were her highest figure since Mar. 12, when she fanned nine batters in a 6-1 win over Minnesota State Moorhead.
 
The last Laker to throw a complete game one-hitter was Andrasik, who did so on Mar. 31, 2014 against Lake Erie in a 4-0 Grand Valley State victory.
 
Five GVSU players had one hit apiece, as the Lakers outhit SVSU by a 5-1 tally. Langs' double and Supernaw's homer were the lone extra base hits by Grand Valley State. Supernaw now has 19 RBI on the season, third-most on the team.
 
The Lakers return home on Thursday (Apr. 14) to take on an improved Findlay team at 3:30 p.m. at the GVSU Softball Field.