CHILLICOTHE, Ohio – The Saginaw Valley State University baseball team exploded for 31 runs on Friday afternoon, sweeping a doubleheader from Lake Erie College by scores of 23-1 in seven innings and 8-6 in nine innings. The Cardinals improved to 4-2 on the season with the pair of victories as the offense scored 31 runs on 24 hits and stole 10 bases.
Ryan Jarvis (Macomb, Mich. / Dakota HS) finished 4-for-6 on the day with six RBI and four runs scored. Buck Snabes (Rochester, Mich. / Rochester Adams HS) followed with a 4-for-7 performance driving in four and touching home plate six times on the day. The starting pitchers for SVSU totaled 10.1 innings pitched, three runs allowed, two earned, four hits, four walks, and 18 strikeouts.
Game One: Saginaw Valley 23, Lake Erie 1 (7-innings)
Saginaw Valley wasted no time taking control in the opener, plating eight runs in the first inning and adding 13 more in the third in a dominant 23-1 victory.
After Ethan Scheib (Mattawan, Mich. / Mattawan HS) was hit by a pitch to open the bottom of the first and Jarvis walked, Snabes singled to center to drive in two runs for a 2-0 lead. Later in the frame, Lucas Mead (Gladwin, Mich. / Gladwin HS) doubled home Snabes, and a wild pitch allowed another run to score. Connor Cornwell (Sterling Heights, Mich. / Henry Ford II HS) delivered a two-run single, and Jarvis capped the inning with a two-run double as the Cardinals built an 8-0 advantage.
The third inning turned the game into a rout. Aaron Bess (Boyne City, Mich. / Boyne City HS) began the frame with a single, stole second and third, and scored on an error. Jarvis singled in a run, Mead and Jacob Pitt (Grand Rapids, Mich. / Catholic Central HS) each drove in runs, and Austin Cicerone (Troy, Mich. / Troy HS) was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to force in another. Bess provided the exclamation point with a grand slam to center field, the first home run for SVSU this year and Bess' fourth as a Cardinal. Jarvis later added another RBI double, and Snabes drove in two more as SVSU scored 13 runs in the inning to extend the lead to 21-0.
The Cardinals added two more in the fifth on a Pitt RBI and additional Lake Erie miscues.
Jarvis finished 3-for-3 with two doubles, four RBI, and three runs scored. Snabes went 2-for-3 with four RBI, Cornwell added three hits and scored three runs, and Mead chipped in two RBI.
On the mound, Jack Decker (W, 1-0) (Farmington Hills, Mich. / North Farmington HS) earned the win, striking out nine over five innings while allowing just one hit and one run. The only run allowed was the only hit Decker gave up with a solo home run in the fourth. Tanner O'Farrell (L, 0-1) took the loss in the start for Lake Erie, only recording one out while allowing eight runs on three hits and two walks.
Evan Woodward (Rochester, Mich. / Stoney Creek HS) and Henry Stempky (Cheboygan, Mich. / Cheboygan HS) combined for two scoreless innings of relief as SVSU held Lake Erie to just two hits and struck out 13 batters.
Game Two: Saginaw Valley 8, Lake Erie 6
The second game proved much tighter, but the Cardinals built an early cushion and held off a late charge for the 8-6 win.
Saginaw Valley struck first in the opening inning. Scheib singled and Snabes followed with a base hit and the pair both swiped a bag to put two in scoring position. Jarvis delivered a two-run single to center for a 2-0 lead. In the third, Snabes doubled and Jarvis walked before Mead drove both in with a double to push the advantage to 4-0.
The Cardinals added a pair in the fourth with a passed ball scoring Bess and a double steal as Brady Carpenter (Oxford, Mich. / Oxford HS) stole second and Scheib swiped home on the play.
Lake Erie rallied in the sixth and seventh innings, scoring five runs to bring it within a run. The Cardinals added insurance with a run in the seventh and eighth on a Mead double and a Ryan McCartan (Lake Orion, Mich. / Lake Orion HS) single.
Mead led the offense in game two, going 2-for-4 with three RBI and two doubles. Snabes scored three runs, while Jarvis drove in two. McCartan added two hits and an RBI.
Nathan Masar (W, 2-0) (Midland, Mich. / Bullock Creek HS) picked up the win after striking out nine over 5.1 innings, allowing just two runs, one earned.
Andrew Pohlmann (Grand Rapids, Mich. / Grandville HS) and Will Juday (Kalamazoo, Mich. / Portage Central HS) worked in relief before Dan Wilcome (Sv, 2) (Cheboygan, Mich. / Cheboygan Area HS) secured the final four outs with two strikeouts.
Up Next: The Cardinals continue their weekend slate in Ohio as they look to carry the momentum from Friday's offensive outburst into Saturday, February 21. The Cardinals and Lake Erie have another doubleheader at VA Memorial Stadium in Chillicothe, Ohio. First pitch for game one is scheduled for 1:00 PM.