By Alexandria Webb
On Saturday, March 14, the Grand Rapids Community College baseball team snagged its first win of the season against Kalamazoo Valley Community College. The final score was 11-10. Despite the mounting pressure of two outs in the bottom of the ninth, the Raiders prevailed, providing three runs to win the game.
Defense was essential to the Raiders, and it was displayed as sophomore Kyle O’Hearn started on the mound, and in five innings led the team with six strikeouts. Another incredible defensive move was when freshman left fielder Henry Streeter and sophomore shortstop Cannon Paul pulled a double play, stopping KVCC from earning any points in the fifth inning.
GRCC made minor errors, allowing KVCC four free bases total in the very first inning, yet everything changed when KVCC player, Troy Scarff, hit a grand slam at the top of the seventh inning. KVCC earned three runs, advancing their score to 9-4. This pressured the Raiders to close the gap in the final innings of the game.
Coach Mike Eddington displayed calmness, knowing this wasn’t the end of the game.
“We try to keep an even keel…we don’t want to get too high or too low, so we just stay even,” Eddington said.
Freshman right fielder Michael Hurlbutt further elaborated on how he stayed calm despite the intensity of the game.
“Having an approach once you go up to the plate, and ‘next man of mine’ mentality,” said Hurlbutt. “I’m going to get on base, but the next man is going to get me in.”
Sophomore pitcher Landon Terry highlights how adjusting from the smallest errors makes the most difference in the end.
“Just keep getting better at the little things, because that’s going to end up getting us all these wins,” Terry said.
This mentality led the Raiders to victory.
Freshman Owen Hendrix cracked a home run to advance two runners home in the bottom of the eighth, earning the team a score of 7-9. Fighting to take hold of that lead, sophomore Cannon Paul hit a single to right field, advancing Henry Streeter home, bringing the score to 8-9, KVCC hanging onto the lead by one run.
As the bottom of that ninth inning started, there was a certain energy buzzing from the Raiders as they took their last bat.
“Everyone stayed up the whole time, and we just knew, as soon as we got a couple guys on base we were going to take it home,” Hurlbutt said.
At the bottom of the ninth with bases loaded, and already two outs, freshman A.J Speigl reached for first base on a fielding error by shortstop. This advanced Jack Lockwood and Owen Hendrix home to earn two runs tying the score 10-10.
Sophomore Cannon Paul hit a single toward the shortstop, giving freshman Henry Streeter an opportunity to score home as the shortstop attempted to get Paul out at first. Streeter won the game with an amazing slide into home. Leaving GRCC to snag the win by just one point, ending the game with cheers and excitement from the team.
“We just need to keep playing to get better. I really liked how they battled back to win the game,” Eddington said.
This game required a lot of effort from every player, along with teamwork and execution of plays by the entire team.
“I loved how the boys fought until the last pitch, and I love going out there and pitching for the boys,” Terry said. “First win of the season for the boys, and couldn’t be happier with the outcome.”
Despite the challenges this game brought, the Raiders battled for the win.
“It was a good game, we got down, and we walked a couple dudes,” Hurlbutt said. “We let them get a couple…free bases, and those guys ended up scoring. It was kind of difficult to hang in there with that, but I feel our team hung in there. We fought all game, and we never got down, and that’s how we ended up coming out on top.”
Knowing this is just the beginning, Eddington looks forward to the rest of the season.
“I am happy for the players, we’re going to have a good team. We have played a lot of the top teams D1, JUCO (junior college), and we are just going to get better, and better,” Eddington said.
Sophomore first baseman Peter Heintz led the team defensively with a total of 12 putouts, while sophomore Cannon Paul helped out with five defensive assists. Offensively, freshman A.J. Speigl tied with Paul as they both had a total of six at bats. Freshman Owen Hendrix chipped in, helping the team earn some runs, as he led the team with four RBIs.
The Raiders will travel to Sandusky, Ohio, for a four-game road trip beginning this Friday, March 20, as they will take on Muskegon Community College at 11 a.m. and will then face off against Delta College at 4 p.m.
Saturday, March 22, the team will play Alpena College at 1:30 p.m. and then Bay College at 4 p.m. They will wrap up the weekend with their final game against Mid Michigan College at 1:30 p.m. All games will take place at Sports Force Park.
Collegiate reporter Gabe Amy contributed to this report.
