Baseball’s Late Rally Falls Short Against Siena Heights

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LIVONIA, Mich. — After suffering a setback in game one, Marygrove baseball climbed to within a run in the final inning of Wednesday’s (April 15) second contest against the visiting Siena Heights Saints. Down 4-0, the Mustangs (2-33, 1-23 WHAC) posted a three-run sixth inning to inch to within one run before falling to the Saints, 6-3, in Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference action at Madonna University’s Ilitch Ballpark.

GAME ONE – Siena Heights 17, @MGroveBASEBALL 0
After a solid start, freshman left-handed pitcher Jacob Baker (Berkley, Mich./Berkley High School) and the Mustangs were on the wrong end of a nine-run fourth inning by the Saints (16-20, 11-12 WHAC). The fourth inning would be the last for Baker – a pitcher who entered Wednesday’s contest with five-and-two-thirds innings of scoreless ball. Despite leaving the game trailing 12-0, Baker was only charged with three earned runs as the Saints tacked on the bulk of their runs in the fourth inning after a Mustang error prolonged the frame.

The Mustangs offense would attempt to get going, but couldn’t scratch a run across the plate in game one as the Saints won running away, 17-0, in seven innings.

Saints starter Thomas McCarter was stingy on the mound, allowing only four baserunners as Trey Blandford (Louisville, Ky./Fern Creek High School), David Chung (Warren, Mich./Bishop Foley High School) and Jon Weatherspoon (Ann Arbor, Mich./Huron High School) were the only three Mustangs to collect a hit in game one.

Daniel Bailey (Harrison Twp., Mich./L’Anse Creuse High School) made his first relief appearance of 2015 and posted two innings of one hit baseball, continuing his  improvement as the season progresses.

GAME TWO – Siena Heights 6, @MGroveBASEBALL 3
Ryne Underwood (Louisville, Ky./Fern Creek High School) got the ball in game two and continued to impress as his freshman season begins to wind down. Coming off six-straight scoreless innings at Cornerstone on Saturday (April 11), Underwood continued to deal as he worked his second complete game in a row in Wednesday’s latter half of the WHAC doubleheader.

Going the distance, Underwood was nearly in line with his first win at the collegiate level when the Mustangs mounted a comeback in the sixth inning.

Down 4-0 in the sixth, the Mustangs’ rally started with a Chung single through the left side and continued one batter later when James Edwards (Detroit, Mich./Shaw University) mirrored Chung’s hit between the Saints’ third baseman and shortstop. With two men on and one out, sophomore catcher Kyle Hartwick (Oxford, Mich./Rend Lake CC) singled up the middle to move Chung and Edwards up one spot each to load the bases.

Weatherspoon nearly grounded into an inning-ending double play but instead reached via fielder’s choice to plate Chung and cut the Saints lead to 4-1. Blandford came up big for the Mustangs again, this time singling to center field to score Edwards and earn his first collegiate RBI in the process. With the Saints lead cut in half, 4-2, senior Chris Gittleman (Windsor, Ontario/Trinity Christian College) came up with a clutch RBI single to left field, plating Weatherspoon to inch the Mustangs to within one, 4-3.

Unfortunately, the rally ended for the Mustangs after Gittleman’s single as the Saints scratched two runs across in the top half of the seventh to defeat the Green and Gold, 6-3.

Edwards and Gittleman led the Mustangs with two hits each while Blandford, Chung, Drew Johnson (Trenton, Mich./Trenton High School) and Hartwick followed with one apiece to account for the Mustangs eight hits in the nightcap.

The Saints’ Kyle Kuhr earned the win after going five-and-a-third innings and Justin McPherson picked up the save in the three-run decision.

UP NEXT
Jeremy Otto and Jimmy Stewart will travel to Grand Rapids, Mich. to call the Mustangs four-game set with Aquinas College Saturday and Sunday (April 18-19) on the Mustang Sports Network. Coverage begins at 12:50 p.m. each day on marygrovemustangs.com/live.

BASEBALL CONTACT: Tim Johnston | [email protected]/* */ | @tjohnston56
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