The Hillsdale baseball team split its series against the Kentucky Wesleyan College Panthers March 26-27, placing it at a 3-5 conference record, the fourth of six teams in the G-MAC North.
After 22 games, the Chargers now have an overall record of 8-14. They retain their No. 1 rank in the G-MAC in fielding, and senior shortstop Lewis Beals is ranked as the 16th best hitter in the conference.
“I played alright this weekend, but didn’t come through in some big spots,” Beals said. “It’s nice to put up good numbers, but I don’t really tend to dwell on those. I’ve had a lot of injuries through my career so simply being able to be out there on the field every day with my guys is a blessing. I love my team. I play because I love them.”
The Chargers won both of the first two games this past weekend. The first game lasted 13 innings before the tie was broken by junior outfielder Joe Hardenbergh’s home run for a final score of 11-10.
“I was just trying to get the ball in play and pass the torch to the next guy, but the pitcher left a slider up in the zone and I drilled it over the centerfield wall,” Hardenbergh said. “I was super pumped running around the bases and knew it got the guys pretty excited as well.”
After tying the game 10-10 at the bottom of the eighth inning, four scoreless innings by senior pitcher Zane Barnhart kept the Panthers at bay.
“The whole game was a full team effort and especially wouldn’t have been possible without Zane coming in and shutting them down for nearly 6 innings,” Hardenbergh said. “It was just a great atmosphere to play in and I am glad I was able to be a part of the win.”
The second game saw an 8-2 Charger victory. Pulling ahead 2-1 in the top of the fourth inning, the team stayed ahead until an explosive five-run sixth inning solidified their lead.
In the final two games, the Chargers lost 7-9 and 1-4 respectively. They trailed 6-0 at the bottom of the fourth inning but pulled ahead with a seven-run fifth inning that put them in the lead. The Panthers put three more runs on the board, however, and a double play in the top of the seventh inning secured their win.
The Panthers used Charger errors to score three runs in the second game. Beals scored a single run, but the team only had six hits throughout the game and left seven players on base.
“The biggest difference from the wins on Sunday and the losses on Monday were timely hits in key situations,” senior infielder Cody Kanclerz said. “Sometimes that just happens. Looking forward to a home weekend series against Tiffin this weekend.”
The Chargers will play four games against Tiffin University April 1-2 followed by one game against Grand Valley State University April 4.
Head coach Tom Vessella anticipates Tiffin putting up a tough series.
“Tiffin is always a strong team,” Vessella said. “We played some good baseball at times this past weekend. Now we just need to be able to maintain our focus for all four games of the series.”
