Games Notes
Live Stats

ALLENDALE, Mich.—The Grand Valley State men's baseball team is off to a strong start in the conference season, having won four of their last five conference matchups to get to 7-3 in the GLIAC, and 16-10-1 overall. A pair of wins against Northwood on Wednesday gave the Lakers their second GLIAC series win of the season.
 
This weekend, the Lakers will host a doubleheader on both Saturday and Sunday against the Walsh Cavaliers (16-14, 7-3 GLIAC), with action on both days beginning at 1 p.m. A live stats link to follow along with the game action can be found posted above, and can also be found on the schedule page at gvsulakers.com.
 
The Cavaliers come into the weekend having won three of their last five games, including a 2-2 record in games played this week. Walsh dropped both games of a Tuesday doubleheader against Lake Erie, before rebounding to sweep Malone in a pair of Wednesday games. The Cavaliers are a power hitting team, as they rank second in the conference in home runs (28) and four in doubles (60), but have sacrificed average for their power, as they possess the second lowest team batting average in the conference (.284), and have struck out at the fourth highest mark in the conference, with 200 on the season. This impatience at the plate is also evidenced by their conference low 65 walks in 30 games, and the second lowest OBP (on-base-percentage) of the 12 conference teams.
 
The Lakers, on the other hand, have been making good contact all season, with a .303 team average (fifth best in the GLIAC) and a .379 OBP.  The Lakers have one less hit on the season than Walsh, and 19 less home runs, but have 37 stolen bases on the season, compared to just four for Walsh, highlighting the difference between the teams. GVSU has also scored 16 more runs than Walsh this season despite playing three less games in total.
 
Utilizing high overall team speed and solid contact hitting, the Lakers have formed a solid scoring offense to support a pitching staff with high potential. In the first game against Northwood on Wednesday, senior Zach Anderson threw a complete game one hitter against the Timberwolves in a 3-0 shutout win, and the second complete game shutout by a Laker pitcher this season (Kyle Lawson 3/11/16). The Lakers staff owns a 4.79 ERA on the season, the third lowest mark in the GLIAC, and have issued just 84 walks through 27 games.  
 
The Lakers have seen strong production from several key members of the lineup in their last six games. Alex Young has continued his torrid rise through the team to lead the GVSU in average, after raising his average more than 150 points in the team's last ten games. In the last six games, Young has had a team high 11 hits and 14 total bases, and has also scored five runs over that span. Connor Glick, seeing time as designated hitter as well as his usual spot as the starting catcher, has been effective with the bat as well, collecting eight hits and driving in six runs in as many games by batting .625 with runners in scoring position.
 
Utility man Matt Williams has made an impact for Grand Valley State with both his bat and his arm, as he has racked up seven hits in six games, but has scored six runs in the same span, and driven in three more. As a pitcher, he has gone a perfect 3-3 in save chances during that span, and is now 9-10 in save opportunities on the year. The closer has not blown a save, much less allowed a run since March ninth, and owns an impressive 0.48 ERA on the season, surrendering just five hits and striking out 29 batters in 18.2 innings.
 
The weekend's games will test the depth of the Laker pitching staff, as the team will have played eight games in seven days by the end of the weekend. The bullpen has done the job for Grand Valley State this season, as the team is 14-0 when leading after six innings. Southpaw Tim Tarter has been solid coming on in relief appearances in between starts, and has allowed just two earned runs in his last seven pitching appearances, picking up two wins and dropping his ERA by almost three runs during that span. Freshman Brett Nearing has also performed well in recent appearances, as he has had five scoreless appearances in a row and picked up his first career win against Wayne State on Monday by pitching 1.2 innings in relief.
 
The weekend's games mark the last home games the Lakers will play for almost two weeks, as the next home action for GVSU is an April 30^th doubleheader against Hillsdale.