CSR (Baseball Splits With Trine)

CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR April 29, 2010
Baseball Splits With Trine
BASEBALL
Trine 5, Calvin 2
Calvin 6, Trine 3
(written by Calvin Sports Information Student Assistant Derek Neice)
With rain clouds looming ominously on the horizon of Calvin Field on Calvin
College’s campus, the Knights went to work Thursday afternoon against what has
been recently an extremely hot Trine Thunder team. The Knights came into the
day the 5th place team in the conference with a 9-11 MIAA record, four games
behind a three-way second place tie that Trine shares with Hope and Albion at
13-7. Trine took game one of the doubleheader 5-2, but the Knights managed to
split the day by taking the second game 6-3 on some great pitching from a
variety of Calvin pitchers.
“I thought we put together two pretty good games today,” said Calvin coach
John Sparks afterwards. “The first one we were a little bit snake bitten
offensively, so I thought our approach at the plate didn’t really reflect on
the scoreboard.”
“I told the guys after the first one to keep that same approach,” Sparks
continued, “and I was really pleased with the second game barring the top of
the seventh. I thought we pitched well and I thought we executed offensively
very well so that’s the kind of game we would like to replicate.”
Calvin’s Tyler Berger was the player of the day for the Knights as he homered
in both games, going 3 for 7 on the day with three RBIs and two runs scored.
Peter Steiner took the mound for the Knights in the first game, coming in with
4.34 earned run average and a 4-2 record. Coming in, Steiner was 1-0 in two
career starts against the Thunder with Calvin winning both of those contests.
For Trine in the first half of the doubleheader, reigning MIAA pitcher of the
week Elliott Gaff got the ball and got the win, his third of the year.
Before Thursday the Thunder have been arguably the hottest team in the
conference as they have been winners of ten of their last twelve MIAA
match-ups, scoring double-digit runs in nine of those wins. Another impressive
stat is Trine’s .442 on base percentage this season, a definite indicator if
the Thunder’s dominance at the plate.
This hot hitting did not take long to emerge in the first game against Calvin
Thursday as the first four Thunder batters reached base. A leadoff double by
right fielder Craig Rinkes followed by an error, a pair of walks and a
sacrifice fly gave Trine an early 2-0 lead.
Calvin nearly answered in the bottom half of the inning after a pair of two
out singles up the middle by right fielder Tyler Berger and designated hitter
Andrew Bosma. Catcher Scott Tipton ripped a hard shot at Trine third baseman
Ryan Smith who made the catch on the laser, ending the inning and preventing
what would certainly have brought in a Calvin run.
The Knights scored a run in the third inning after some heads up running by
Kyle Gurzynski, who reached on a one-out walk. A wild pitch by Gaff that was
misplayed by the Trine catch got Gurzynski to second, and an overthrown ball on
the same play gave just enough time to see Gurzynski make it to third. A
ground ball out brought in the run.
But just as soon as Calvin brought the game within a run, the Thunder brought
in another storm in the top of the fourth as they added another three runs to
lead 5-1.
After a couple innings of scoreless ball for both teams, Calvin came alive
again in the sixth inning as they got a leadoff home run to deep left center by
Berger, his second hit of the game and fifth homer of the season. In the
seventh Calvin did load the bases with two outs, bringing Berger to the plate,
the man who already had a solo shot in the sixth. Berger had an exciting last
at bat as he launched an (0-2) pitch to deep right, but the wind killed any
chances the ball had of leaving the park and Trine got out of the inning with
the 5-2 win.
Steiner took the loss, his third of the year, scattering seven hits and four
walks over the full seven innings while striking out one. Gaff nabbed his
third win of the year, striking out three while allowing five hits, two walks
and three hit batsmen over six and two thirds innings. Trine’s Michael Sentman
got the final out for his fifth save of the season
. Calvin’s Berger went 2 for 4 with a home run and a single, and Gurzynski,
Bosma and Vos filled out the other three Calvin hits.
“They [Trine] made all the plays they needed to that first game,” Sparks said.
 “They made some tough plays on defense and sometimes you just have to tip your
hats to them and say they played a great defensive game.”
Game two saw Calvin’s Eric Poencet get the start, his fourth start of the
year. Coming in at 1-1 and a 3.05 earned run average, Poencet took on Trine’s
Adam Schiltz, a 3-3 pitcher with a 6.86 earned run average. The pitching for
the Knights went into lockdown mode in that game two as they did not allow a
run in the full seven innings.
Poencet started things out really well in the first inning with two strikeouts
and in the bottom half Calvin got a leadoff double from Gurzynski as he looped
a nice breaking ball from Schiltz over the third baseman’s head. A subsequent
sac bunt and sac fly gave Calvin the early 1-0 lead.
Calvin maintained their hitting in the second inning as they added a second
run on an RBI double from catcher Matt Dodrill. A subsequent suicide squeeze
bunt from left fielder Jake Van Alten brought in a third run. A fourth inning
homerun from Berger, his second of the day, upped the lead to 4-0.
Calvin added a couple of runs in the bottom of the sixth off an RBI singles
from freshman center fielder Ty Tos and sophomore Jake Van Alten. Calvin
amassed eight hits in game two to build their six run lead going into the final
frame, multi-hit games coming from
Poencet put together a great start that actually went short as he lasted only
four and two thirds innings, allowing only two hits, two walks and putting up
goose eggs on the scoreboard with three strikeouts. Sophomore Joe Lambers
relieved Poencet in the fifth inning with two outs, going one and a third
innings of scoreless ball as well. Cody Batchelor picked up an out in the
seventh but gave up a hit and two walks to juice the bases for the Thunder.
Calvin’s Rob Kool entered the game and skimmed a (3-1) pitch off the Trine
batter’s helmet to score the first Thunder run of the game.
Kool managed to strike out Trine’s cleanup hitter Brian Hoeper with the bases
still loaded, but then gave up a monster shot to deep right, a standup 2-RBI
double from Brad Laucher to close the gap at 6-3. Kool then got ahead of Joe
Minnich (0-2) and managed to strike him out to end the game and preserve the
win for Poencet.
“Eric [Poencet] and Joe [Lambers] have come along really nicely for us, and
Tyler [Berger] had a really good day at the plate,” said Sparks of some of his
young talent on the team. “I would like to think the future is bright with six
of our eight field players being freshmen, and so we have gone through the
inevitable growing pains that go along with that process.”
“But what we’re trying to do the last ten games is to be more consistent and
gain some momentum going into next year,” Sparks concluded.
The doubleheader split moves Trine and Calvin’s conference records to 14-8 and
10-12 respectively, and Calvin goes back into action against Trine Saturday as
the Knights travel down south to complete the four game series. That pair of
games will kick off at 1 p.m. Saturday May 1.
MIAA BASEBALL STANDINGS THROUGH 4-29-10 GAMES
Adrian 18-4
Albion 14-8
Hope 14-8
Trine 14-8
Calvin 10-12
Alma 6-16
Kalamazoo 6-16
Olivet 6-16
Received on Fri Apr 30 00:12:55 2010