Grand Valley State split a pair of games on its opening day in Florida, dropping its opening game by an 8-7 score to West Virginia Wesleyan, but regrouping for a key 16-6 win over Minnesota State. GVSU will play Seton Hill Monday (Mar. 3) in a doubleheader beginning at 2:30 p.m. at Osceola Heritage Park Field 1. 

Minnesota State 
The second game of the day versus DII power Minnesota State did not start the way the Lakers wanted. The leadoff batter was retired on a pop up to 1B Ryan Blake-Jones, but a single, followed by a double and home run gave the Mavericks a quick 3-0 lead in the top of the first. The Lakers got a run back in the bottom of the second when CF Drake Ellens' sac fly scored 3B Anthony Cocco who singled and moved third on a double by C Joe Laudont. Laudont then pulled the Lakers to within one (3-2) when his second double of the game scored Blake-Jones who singled to left. Minnesota State pushed across a run in the top of the fourth to take a 4-2 lead, but GVSU put up seven runs on two hits and two Maverick errors in the bottom of the fifth. A walk, single and error loaded the bases for the hot hitting Joe Laudont who doubled his first two at bats on the day. His third at bat resulted in a grand slam that gave GVSU its first lead of the game (6-4). 2B Alex Mandeville then plated a pair of runs in the fifth when he reached on an error and Jacob Gleason drove in the final run of the inning with a sac fly to up the Lakers' lead to 9-4. 

Laudont reached base for the fourth consecutive time when he was hit by a pitch to lead off the sixth, followed by an Ellens walk. A Nathan Bonter groundout moved the runners up and a Mandeville single plated two to give the Lakers an 11-4 lead. Minnesota State scored a pair of runs in the top of the seventh, but the Lakers ended the game early with five runs in the bottom half of the seventh to take a 16-6 lead. Gleason opened the inning by getting hit by a pitch and then stole second. Cocco reached on an error and Gleason scored. Laudont was hit by a pitch for the second time and reached base for the fifth time in the game, followed by a triple to left off the bat of Ellens that pushed two more runs across. Bonter tripled to center to score Ellens and the game ended when Mandeville reached on an error to score Bonter. 

GVSU scored 16 runs on 12 hits with two errors, while Minnesota State scored six runs on nine hits with four errors. Laudont was 3-for-3 with five RBI, while Mandeville also drove in five runs. Ellens plated three runs  and scored three runs. Christian Mercure picked up the win on the mound, yielding six runs, five of which were earned, on nine hits with four strikeouts in 6.1 innings of work. Brendan Nearing got the final two outs in the top of the seventh. 

West Virginia Wesleyan
The Lakers led 1-0 after two innings and then built a 4-1 lead after a three-run top of the fourth. 2B Alex Mandeville drove in a pair with a double to right and SS Parker Murdie plated C Ryan Lorber who reached on an error. WV Wesleyan pushed across two runs in the bottom of the fourth and then took a 7-4 lead with three runs in the bottom of the fifth. A single run in the bottom of the sixth upped the lead to 7-4, but the Lakers came back with two runs in the top of the seventh. RF Jacob Gleason tripled to open the inning, then Chase Carpenter came through with a pinch hit double to score Gleason. C. Carpenter eventually scored on a wild pitch to pull Lakers within one (7-6).

WV Wesleyan took an 8-6 lead with a run in bottom of the seventh. However, the play of the game was made defensively when with the bases loaded and  one out, Gleason hit a shot at the third baseman who gloved the ball, stepped on third for the force and then threw out Gleason at first. The Lakers scored one in the top of the ninth, but left the tying run on second. 

GVSU collected seven runs on nine hits with one error, while West Virginia Wesleyan scored eight runs on 12 hits with three errors. Freshman pitcher Rylan Peets got the start, yielding three earned runs on seven hits in 3.1 innings of work. Keaghan Sutliff was tagged with the loss for the Lakers, giving up three runs on two hits in 1.1 innings on the hill. Murdie was 2-for-3 with an RBI, while C. Carpenter was 2-for-2 with an RBI. Mandeville was 1-for-4 with two RBI.