The Hillsdale baseball team defeated the Davenport Panthers, one of two teams ranked No. 1 in the GLIAC Preseason Coaches Poll, in their series this weekend. 

The final scores were 5-4, 2-5, and 13-8 with the Chargers batting in 20 total runs and recording two home runs. 

“It was an awesome weekend,” senior pitcher Drew Olssen said. “Going into the third game tied one-to-one, our offense came alive and we were able to stay with it. I don’t think they were expecting that from us again.” 

In game one, senior pitcher Will Gifford held the Panthers back for six innings with six strikeouts and three walks, giving up only three hits and one run. Junior outfielder Lewis Beals also hit a two-run home run, and junior closing pitcher Zane Barnhart secured the first win after throwing three strikeouts in the bottom of the ninth. 

“Will Gifford bounced back from his first start with a wonderful performance on the mound to help the tone in game one,” head coach Tom Vessella said. “This series showed our potential as a team. Good teams find ways to win and compete at all costs, and we did that this weekend.”

In game two, senior starting pitcher Tommy MacLean pitched five innings with six strikeouts and one walk, giving up four hits and one earned run. However, Davenport pulled ahead in the seventh inning and won the game. 

“I was able to flip my curveball over first strike whenever I wanted, which felt good, and then mix in a fastball,” MacLean said. “This team is one of the teams you can’t really overpower with a fastball, so I really had to rely on my curveball, changeup, and I mean, all three pitches had to mix pretty well.” 

In game three, the Chargers scored four runs in the fifth inning, and dominated the game from there, partly due to the efforts of junior pitcher Paul Brophy and Barnhart. Davenport did not record a single run in the final three innings.

“Especially in game three, everything sort of came together,” Olssen said. “A couple of big moments in game three were from our designated hitter. Will Shannon got a home run, so he brought us back and that sort of sparked everything from there. Davenport was still in it. The energy was still there for them. And then our shortstop, Aidan Brewer, hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the seventh, and you could tell their emotions were sort of downhill from there.” 

Olssen also said that he appreciates the support of the team parents. 

“Our parents, all the supporting cast around us travel so well,” Olssen said. “There are the same amount of spectators, parents, family, friends that go to these games that go to our home besides the student body. They give up a lot of time and effort to be able to come watch us play and support us. Shout out to them for that.” 

The Chargers will play Wayne State University Feb. 25 and 26 in Knoxville, Tennessee, taking this upcoming weekend off. 

“They’re a good team,” MacLean said. “They have a lot of returning graduate students who have an extra year of eligibility that are playing. They’re all like 24. They’ll be pretty good. But you know, we played them in a midweek game last year. We ended up beating them. So that’s a good sign for going into this next weekend against them. I think we’ll be just fine if we just play clean baseball, have confidence, and know that we’re good enough to win.”