Winter Park, Fla. – Saginaw Valley State University baseball had their second game against Rollins College, the former South Super Regional champions, Tuesday afternoon. A back and forth game that showcased multiple leads for the Cardinals and the Tars were down to their last pitch a couple of times before tying it in the ninth and walking off SVSU 10-9 in the tenth.
SVSU (4-8) put up two crooked numbers with a four-run second and a three-run eighth. However, the Tars (13-4) are a tough and gritty team scoring in six of their 10 innings.
Rollins jumped out early in the first with a two-run single. In the top of the second, the Cardinals strung lots of good at-bats together. Two singles and a walk loaded the bases before Logan Welch walked, then Brendan Conkle walked, both bringing in a run to tie the game. After a pitching change, Jaccar Watkins drove in a run with a sacrifice fly to give SVSU a 3-2 lead. After a Tucker Roe single, Colin Cornwell hit a sacrifice fly of his own to double the lead.
The Cardinals added one more in the fourth as Cornwell singled up the middle to score Watkins. In the bottom half of the inning, SVSU starter JJ Arbini (0-0) was about to finish his third straight scoreless inning before an RBI single cut into the lead. Arbini threw 3 2/3 innings allowing three runs and struck out three in his first start of the season.
Rollins would continue to chip away, and Saginaw Valley continued to push their lead. Another run in the fifth for the Tars made it 5-4 Cardinals. In the sixth, Cornwell doubled home Tucker Roe to make it a two-run game again. Cornwell finished 2-for-3 with three RBI and Roe finished 4-for-6 scoring two runs.
In the bottom of the sixth, Rollins jumped back ahead. A run came in to score on a ground out, and then a two-run home run gave the Tars a 7-6 lead. Reed Raymond came in to pitch in the seventh for SVSU. After starting in the lineup as the designated hitter, he pitched three innings allowing two unearned runs on four hits.
After losing the lead late again to the Tars, the Cardinals didn't lose their spirit. In the eighth, the rally began with the first two getting on base. Roe singled home McClennen to tie the game 7-7. A walk loaded the bases, and then Austin Schweiger singled in a run to give SVSU the lead again. On the next at-bat, Raymond reached on a fielder's choice scoring Roe making it 9-7.
Rollins rallied in the ninth against Raymond. The first two batters got out, but after a double and a single, a fielding error allowed one to score and the tying run to get to second. The next batter singled to left to tie the game at 9-9 and force extra innings.
Another two-way player took the mound for SVSU. Brandon Scheurer (L, 0-2) moved from shortstop to pitcher and the Tars got the winning run on base to lead off the inning. After a sacrifice bunt and an intentional walk, a single to right field looked like it would end it, but Cornwell came up throwing and cut the winning run down at the plate. Another walk loaded the bases, and then a single to right did the job for Rollins to win 10-9.
UP NEXT
SVSU has a day off on the spring break trip on Wednesday before taking on the University of Minnesota Crookston on Thursday at 9:15 a.m.
