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2004 GLIAC Baseball
Championship Day One: Eagles, Lakers Win Tourney Openers |
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A Top 40 radio station wouldn’t have been able to keep pace with the baseball teams from Ashland and Grand Valley State on the first day of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference tournament. Top-seeded Ashland pounded out 18 hits on the way to a 19-1 win over fourth-seeded Wayne State Thursday (May 6) at AU’s Donges Field in the first round of the tournament. In the other first round game, second-seeded Grand Valley State jumped in front early and held on to beat the third seed, Saginaw Valley State, 11-7. Ashland won its 12th consecutive game thanks in large part to senior outfielder Brandon Cornell. Cornell went 3-for-6 with three runs scored and six RBI. Cornell just missed hitting for the cycle, the only hit he missed was a single. He belted a three-run homer in the first inning off of Kyle Hill (5-4) as AU struck for six runs in the bottom of the first. AU added three runs in the second and two in the third and fourth innings to take a 13-0 lead after four frames. Junior right fielder Allen Ayers went 3-for-5 with a triple and three runs scored from the leadoff spot for Ashland, now 44-11. Freshman third baseman Casey Jirsa ripped his eighth homer of the season. Freshman righthander Josh Davidson went seven innings to up his record to 9-2. The rookie allowed a run on seven hits. He walked two and fanned five. Davidson has won eight consecutive decisions. Bobby Marten and Tim Baywal both went 2-for-4 for Wayne State (22-27). GVSU got a quality start from junior Jon Micuff, who lasted 6 2/3 innings in improving to 10-2. Micoff allowed two hits in the first inning and then held Saginaw Valley (25-24) hitless until the seventh inning. The Lakers (37-14) got him four runs in the bottom of the third inning. Scott Allen had a two-run double in the frame and Joe Mertes added a two-run single. GVSU had a 7-0 lead after six innings, but the Cardinals fought back and trailed by just a run, 8-7 heading into the bottom of the eighth. A three-run homer by Chris Norton in the eighth got the Cardinals back in the game. The Lakers put the game away with three runs in their half of the eighth. Joe Finnerty went the final 1 1/3 innings to get his eighth save of the year. Allen was 3-for-5 with two RBI for Grand Valley and Brandon McFarland went 3-for-4 and knocked in a pair of runs. Matt Wright was 2-for-4 with three RBI. Mike Crawford was the lone SVSU player to collect more than one hit, he went 2-for-5. Steve Liebrecht (5-3) took the loss. He pitched 3 1/3 innings and was charged with four runs. Three more tournament games will be played Friday (May 7). The opening game at 10 a.m., matches Ashland and Grand Valley State. At 1 p.m., Wayne State and Saginaw Valley State will play an elimination game. The loser from the first game will play the second game survivor at 4 p.m. |