On Saturday, Hillsdale kicked off a weekend series in Tiffin with two close, hard-fought contests with the host Dragons, who are currently tied for the G-MAC lead.

The Chargers came up short in a 12-11 thriller in the first game. The second game? To be continued, as darkness halted play with the two teams tied at 9-apiece and Hillsdale up to bat in the top of the seventh inning.

Hillsdale nearly pulled off a miracle comeback in the first game, plating eighth runs in the top of the ninth inning to turn a 12-3 deficit into a 12-11 Tiffin lead. Hillsdale had the go-ahead run at the plate but the clock struck midnight on the Chargers' comeback hopes right before Hillsdale could pull even in the contest.

Lewis Beals led off the inning with a solo home run to jump-start the Charger offense, and James Krick added a three-run blast later in the inning. Aidan Brewer hit a two-run single for the Chargers, Zak Kent hit a RBI single and Beals actually had another RBI hit in the inning, driving in a run on a double as the Chargers batted around and then some to try and make the comenack.

Danny Passinault drove in all three runs for the Chargers prior to the ninth inning, hitting RBI singles in the top of the fourth and top of the sixth, and driving in a run on a sacrifice fly in the top of the third.

Beals, Brewer and Krick all had three hits for Hillsdale in the loss, and Jaekob Sallee chipped in a triple as well.

Logan Simon took the loss in relief for Hillsdale, striking out four, walking none and giving up four earned runs in two innings after taking over for starter Drew Olssen, who pitched two innings in his first start this season after returning from injury. Nate Waligora, Brandon Scott and Drew Erdei all pitched in relief as well for Hillsdale, with Erdei striking out three and giving up no earned runs in an inning and two-thirds of relief as well.

Hillsdale jumped out in front in the nightcap, with freshman Zak Kent hitting a two-run home run in the top of the second to help give the Chargers an early 3-0 lead. Tiffin answered back with six runs in the bottom of the third to jump ahead, and from there, the game seesawed wildly back and forth between the two squads. 

The Chargers tied the game in the top of the fifth, thanks to RBI singles by Krick, Passinault and Sean Nemetz that combined to drive in three runs. After Tiffin retook an 8-6 lead in the bottom of the fifth, the Chargers plated three runs in the next half-inning, sparked by another leadoff home run by Beals, to seize the lead again, 9-8. In the very next inning, Tiffin tied the game at 9 on a wild pitch and loaded the bases, but pitcher Zane Barnhart was able to get out of the jam with a strikeout and a flyout to end the threat. Darkness meant the seventh and deciding inning had to be postponed to the next day.

Hillsdale (12-16, 5-8 G-MAC) will be back in action against the Dragons on Sunday, starting by picking up the second game where both teams left off, tied at 9-9 in the top of the seventh with the Chargers coming up to bat. Tiffin and Hillsdale will then finish the remainder of the series with two more games on Sunday, a seven-inning contest and a nine-inning contest, to follow after the second game is resolved.

Photo by Gwen Buchhop