The Charger baseball team split its first weekend series at home against the Thomas More University Saints, and then outlasted Saginaw Valley State University April 1.
The Chargers came out with a 15-0 win in the first game on Friday but dropped the nightcap, 2-1. On Saturday, the Chargers won the first game 9-3 and again lost the second game in a close 8-7 matchup. Freshman Billy Porotsky had five hits and four RBIs during the weekend, including a triple in the first inning of Friday’s day game and a three-run home run during Saturday’s day game.
“My teammates set me up for both my triple and home run by just getting on base and hitting the ball well,” Porotsky said. “Hitting is contagious in baseball, and it’s all about doing your job and getting the next guy up in a spot to succeed.”
The first game Friday consisted of 18 hits by the Chargers, prompted by a strong first inning of seven runs on seven hits. Sophomore pitcher Daniel Higdon got the win with six scoreless innings, including five strikeouts and four walks.
After the blowout game Friday afternoon, the Chargers struggled to keep up with the Saints. Along with Porotsky, sophomores Will Millard and Aaron Jasiak put up the four hits of the game, two of which were by Millard. One of his hits was an RBI double in the seventh inning, bringing in the only run for the Chargers that game. The Chargers were unable to bring Millard in from second to tie the game, finishing with only one run.
“The seventh inning started with Augie Hutchison taking a good at-bat and getting a walk to give us a chance,” Millard said. “Late in games, it is about getting the next guy up when you are down a couple of runs, so, when I was at the plate, I was trying to do my job and get it to the next guy.”
On Saturday, the Chargers came out swinging with a two-run home run by freshman Will Lehman in the bottom of the first inning. The Chargers brought in two other runs along with Porotsky’s three-run home run in the sixth inning, getting five runs off six hits in one inning. Sophomore pitcher Jacob Pallo pitched the entire game, striking out four and walking one in the seven-inning competition.
“Our offense got some runs up early which allowed us to relax a little bit and play looser, and then we played really well defensively, especially by turning a lot of double plays,” Pallo said. “It helped keep my pitch count low and allowed me to stay in the full game. The energy from the dugout was great too, it kept me fired up throughout the entirety of the game.”
The Chargers also traveled to Saginaw Valley State University on Tuesday, April 1. The rematch between the two teams ended with a 3-2 Charger victory thanks to a 3-0 lead by the fourth inning.
The Charger’s week of competition put them at 14-14 overall and 7-5 in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference. They will play another four-game series at home against the Lake Erie College Storm on April 5 and 6 at 1 and 4 p.m.
