Scots Swept By Hope in MIAA Baseball Opener at Klenk Park
ALMA, Mich. - Alma College opened its MIAA schedule, hosting Hope College Saturday at Klenk Park and losing two games, 9-0 and 3-1. Alma is now 1-7 on the season and 0-2 in MIAA action.
The first game, Alma was shut out as sophomore pitcher Joe Thiry (Grand Rapids/GR Christian) took the loss on the mound, throwing 3.2 innings, allowing 10 hits and five earned runs. Tom Montgomery (Big Rapids/Decatur, Ind.) came in in relief to close the game, allowing four hits and two runs in 12 at bats.
Alma opened defensively with an error by second baseman Dan Morales (Lansing/Eastern) allowing Hope's Matt Sattler to reach base. With a stolen base by Sattler to move to scoring position and taking third on a throwing error by catcher Ty Bolley (Lansing/Eastern), Sattler would score on a Brian Baker single down the right line, unearned.
Morales would be the only Scot for the first four innings to reach base, after a single into right field.
Hope would add another unearned run in the second by Scott Sommavilla after reaching base on a double to right field, but was safe at home when Bolley dropped the ball at home, scoring Sommavilla.
Hope would add two runs in the third, three in the fourth and two in the fifth to cap off scoring for the first game. Baker went 3-for-4 at the plate for the Dutch while for the Scots, sophomore Jeremy Stephens (Fulton-Middleton) was solid in the field, turning double plays and proving a strong presence at shortstop, going 2-for-3 at the plate with four putouts and four assists in the field. Stephens was one of just three players to notch hits for the Maroon and Cream and the only player with multiple hits in the game.
The second game saw Stephens come through with the lone run of the game, going 1-for-3 at the plate. Wade Slavik (Ashley/Fulton-Middleton) took the loss, throwing a complete seven inning game, allowing three runs on nine hits while striking out six of 28 batters faced, including three looking.
Both Alma and Hope opened the first innning of the second game going three and out. But the top of the second saw Bill Lutke single through the left side, then steal second. Two batters later, VanBeek doubled into left center to plate Lutke. Alma would get a runner only as far as second base when Mike Slesinski (Milford) reached first on a walk in the fourth and moved to second a passed ball. No other Scot runner would move beyond second base until the bottom of the seventh inning.
But first, the third inning saw Judson strike out before Sattler singled to shortstop, then stole second. Baker singled to center on the ensuing at bat to score Sattler. Sattler moved to second with a stolen base and scored with a Lutke single into left field. It was the last run that Hope would score in the game.
Stephens led off the bottom of the seventh for the Scots, with the team down 3-0. Stephens singled to shortstop, followed by a single from second baseman Ray Foley (New Hudson/South Lyon) and then freshman Luke Grover (Vestaburg) came in as a pinch hitter, taking his base on balls to load the bases and bring the winning run to plate. Drew Tarkington (Alpena) was the first out of the game with an infield fly to shortstop. Freshman left fielder Mike McAlpin (Mt. Pleasant) came to the plate at the bottom of the Scots' order and took his base when he was hit by the pitch.
Hope's pitcher Wuis came through to get both Dan Merian (Milford) and Morales to go down swinging to end the game.
Alma is now 1-7 on the season and 0-2 in MIAA play and returns to action with the trip to Hope Monday.
Posted: Sat, March 24th, 2007 at 6:15PM
