ADRIAN, Mich. – The Alma College baseball team opened up postseason play vs the number two seeded Calvin Knights in the MIAA Tournament on Wednesday, May 7th at Adrian College. Alma got into a defensive battle with the Knights where runs were hard to come by, but the Scots were able to drive in two behind their ace's lights out performance.
Tyler Johnson took full control of the game, setting an MIAA Tournament record along with tying the Alma College single game strikeout record, fanning an impressive 19 Knights batters in nine innings in the mound. Johnson only let up two hits in the complete game, along with only walking one batter, which came in the eighth inning.
Both pitchers brought the heat in the first several innings, keeping hits to a minimum and showing their true arm talents. Alma was able to break through in the fifth inning, as Kyler Warren singled to right center field, collecting the third hit of the game for the Scots. Charlie Martyn followed suit with a single of his own to left field, advancing warren to second. Mitch Foley then fought off a back-and-forth at bat that lasted into double-digit pitches, for a single to left field, sending Warren home and scoring the first run of the game.
Two innings later, Alex Kavalick opened up the inning with a triple to right field. Charlie Martyn collected another single, this time to right field, scoring Ryan Suchota, who pinch ran for Kavalick, to put the Scots up 2-0. Alma would load the bases following the Martyn single, though the Knights defense would find a way out of the jam and keep the game within reach heading into the bottom of the seventh.
The Scots defense led by Johnson on the mound, bent but would not break, showing that especially in the ninth inning. The Knights opened their final three outs with a single and an error, putting runners on second and third with zero outs. Johnson showed his collectiveness and clutch factor, striking out the next three batters consecutively, two of who looking and the final out of the game swinging.
Alma will now advance along in the winners bracket of the double-elimination tournament, facing off against the four-seeded Kalamazoo College Hornets, who upset the top-seeded host Adrian Bulldogs, 5-4, earlier in the day. The fourth game between the two teams in seven days is slated for a 12:00 PM first pitch on Nicolay Field, on the campus of Adrian College.
