Alma, Mich. – The Alma College baseball team (13-19, 9-11 MIAA) took one of two games Sunday at Klenk Park against the Kalamazoo College Hornets (12-21, 10-14 MIAA). Kalamazoo won the first game, 5-3, with Alma taking game two, 8-6. 

Junior shortstop Zach Schirmer (Bay City, Mich. / Bay City Western) went 3-for-8 on the day with three RBI and two runs scored. 

The win in game two keeps the Scots in playoff position in fourth place in the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association heading into the final week of the regular season. The Hornets are one game back of Alma as they are tied for fifth in the league with Calvin College. 

How It Happened

Game One: Kalamazoo 5, Alma 3

• Making his first career start, freshman Clay Crouterfield (Standish, Mich. / Standish-Sterling) retired the first three batters in the top of the first. Then in the bottom half of the inning, junior catcher Jaret Koin (Sterling, Mich. / Standish-Sterling) led off with a single and stole second. He would later score on a two RBI single by junior third baseman Logan Huff (Johannesburg, Mich. / Johannesburg-Lewiston). 
• The Hornets stung the Scots with four runs in the second inning, with three of them coming with two outs. After giving up a run in the third on a sacrifice fly, Crouterfield stranded a runner at third by ending the inning with a strikeout. 
• The Scots looked to pull off the three-run comeback in the later frames. Alma had runners at first and third with no outs when senior left fielder Jordan Anstandig (West Bloomfield, Mich. / Walled Lake Northern) drove home a run with a sacrifice fly. But that's all the Scots would get that inning. 
• In the final inning, Alma was able to put runners on second and third with one out with still being down by two runs. The rally ended though with a strike out and a ground out as the Hornets took the first game on the day. 

Game Two: Alma 8, Kalamazoo 6 

• Alma pounced first with a five run second inning that was highlighted by singles, a sacrifice fly, a Hornet error and hit by pitch. Anstandig scored the first run of the inning after Koin was hit by a pitch with bases loaded. Junior center fielder Pete Carravallah (Canton, Mich. / Plymouth) drove in the next one with a sac fly to left. Freshman right fielder Noah Hamilton (Fowler, Mich. / Fowler) scored his first career run on an error with two outs and then junior first baseman Max Trucks (Mt. Pleasant, Mich. / Mt. Pleasant) made it a 5-0 game with a two RBI single through the right side of the infield. 
• Starting pitcher Jordan Masters (Waterford, Mich. / Kettering) kept Kalamazoo off the scoreboard until the fifth as the Hornets rallied with two outs to earn two walks and two singles to make it 5-1 game. Junior Dylan Clark (Tomball, Mich. / Tomball Memorial) relieved Masters, and after giving up a bases loaded walk, the righty forced a fly out to get out of the jam and keep the lead at three. 
• Kalamazoo chipped away another run in the top of the sixth but the Scots gained some insurance with three more in the bottom half of the inning with all three scoring on a bases clearing double by Schirmer. 
• Freshman Ty Sobczak (Petoskey, Mich. / Petoskey) took the mound in the top of the seventh and finished out the game for the Scots with a three inning save. 

Notables

• Huff extended his season-long hit streak to 11 games with three hits between the two games today. 
• Sobczak's save was his third of the season. The freshman is tied for most saves in MIAA games this season in the league.  
• Clark earned his first career win in game two.   
• Koin took the team lead for stolen bases with two more today. The junior has nine so far this year. 

Up Next 

Alma goes straight into another MIAA series starting tomorrow as they are in the midst of a run of four straight doubleheaders in as many days. The Scots host Olivet College Monday with the first game scheduled to start at 2 p.m.