Schedule
#5 Hillsdale College (24-26, 17-15 G-MAC) vs #4 Findlay (24-25, 16-14 G-MAC) | 4:30 p.m. ET Wednesday, May 7 | Mason, OH – Prasco Park, Legacy Field
#8 Tiffin (23-27, 14-18 G-MAC) vs #1 Northwood (31-19, 25-7 G-MAC) | 6 p.m. ET Wednesday, May 7 | Mason, OH – Prasco Park, Prasco Field
Full bracket with dates and times can be found on the G-MAC Tournament Central page.
 
Links
Live Stats/Stream Links | Hillsdale Roster | Findlay Roster | Hillsdale Stats | Findlay Stats | G-MAC Standings | G-MAC Stats
 
Preview
For the second time in three seasons, and the fourth time in program history, the Hillsdale College baseball team heads to Prasco Park for the G-MAC Tournament looking to make a deep run.
While the Chargers aren't the favorites, coming in as the fifth seed, Hillsdale could represent a dangerous dark horse, as the Chargers have taken a game off of every single team in their pool, and split with both top-seeded Northwood and fourth-seeded Findlay in the regular season. That resume means that Hillsdale could have its best chance to claim the tourney title since their only win in 2018 if the Chargers can get hot over the next four days.

The G-MAC Tournament has a new format this year, with two four-team pods. The 1, 4, 5 and 8 seeds will play in one double elimination pod over three days, and the 2, 3, 6, and 7 seeds will play in the other pod. On Saturday, the winners of both pods will meet in one, winner-takes-all final game.

Hillsdale opens with rival Findlay in the 4/5 game on Wednesday afternoon, a matchup that looks on paper like it could be one of the most competitive tournament. Findlay got the four seed over Hillsdale based on a slight edge in winning percentage but the two teams enter with nearly identical overall and conference records, and split four meetings at Findlay earlier this season. Hillsdale has a slight edge statistically, hitting .272 this season to Findlay's .261, scoring nearly 40 more runs, and posting a 5.36 ERA to Findlay's 6.38, but the edge is tight enough that the Oilers won't have to play much above their standard to erase the gap.

The Oilers' top starter this season, and the presumed favorite to take the mound against the Chargers, is junior Carson Mellott, who has a 5.68 ERA, a 5-5 record, and 45 strikeouts to 31 walks. Mellott won a 12-7 game in his start against Hillsdale earlier this season, but the Chargers were able to tag him for nine hits and seven runs, though only two earned. If not Mellott, Ethan Mohr, Dylan Rouse, Sebastian Stevens and Logan Bragg are other starting options. Findlay's rotation hasn't had the best luck this season, but it's been augmented by an excellent bullpen led by strong relievers in Camdon Tuttle, who is 3-0 with nine saves, and Colin Becker, who's won four games as well.  Connor Evanich and Kaden Holman have pitched often out of the bullpen as well for the Oilers.

Findlay's offense has been below average on paper, ranking 10^th out of 12 G-MAC teams in batting average, but the Oilers have punched above their weight with timely hitting and excellent baserunning. Luke Senften has been the team's leading hitter with a .345 average, 18 extra base hits and 31 RBIs, and Gavyn Smith has five home runs as well. Junior outfielder Keelan Daniel is a .330 hitter and a weapon on the basepaths also for the Oilers. Over the last two weeks, Findlay has dearly missed Casey Maruniak, the team's top hitter in OPS (1.027) and their biggest weapon on base with 37 stolen bases. Maruniak hasn't played since April 18 and it would make a huge difference if Findlay could get him back.

On the other side of Hillsdale's pod, top-seeded Northwood plays eighth-seeded Tiffin, with Hillsdale playing one of those two teams in their next game on Thursday, win or lose on Wednesday.
Northwood, which clinched the G-MAC regular season title by a game last week, boasts the G-MAC's top offense. In contrast to past Timberwolves teams that were known for monster home run totals, however, this edition is getting it done with doubles and strong baserunning. Northwood is second in the conference in runs scored and has 74 stolen bases. Veteran Myles Beale leads the way with a .356 batting average and a team-high 62 hits, while juniors Caden Duryea and Ben DeVries bring the power, as Duryea has a team high 53 RBIs and DeVries has a team-best six home runs. Alex Jarboe and Ben Narr are two additional key hitters for a stacked Northwood lineup.

On the mound, Northwood has reloaded around returning starters Tyler Sager (7-1, 3.72 ERA) and Grant LaMarche (2-6, 4.88 ERA). Trevor Crawford has stepped in and been a high-quality starter for the Timberwolves with a 4-2 record and a 3.00 ERA, and Davenport transfer Connor Foley and JuCo transfer Jake Ickes have also played important roles as starters. Sager threw a no-hitter earlier in the season against Lake Erie and should be Northwood's first-game starter this weekend. Lucas McKinney has two saves to lead the bullpen, which also gets significant contributions from Cody Matuz, Adam Wandzel and converted starter Dominic Mauro. Northwood's staff has a G-MAC-best 4.30 ERA and backs up their pitchers with a defense that boasts a G-MAC-leading .972 fielding percentage.

Hillsdale went 1-3 against Tiffin on the road two weeks ago, and those quality wins helped the Dragons sneak into the G-MAC Tourney as the final team in by way of a tiebreaker over Cedarville. Tiffin has a decent offense organized built around cleanup hitter Andrew Fairbrother, who's having an impressive season as one of the G-MAC's best power hitters, with 14 doubles, the second-most home runs in the conference with 13, and a team-leading 50 RBIs. Not just a big bat, Fairbrother also boasts a solid .470 on-base percentage. He's supported in the lineup by two high-average hitters, Griff Cady and leadoff hitter Ty Hatfield, who has a G-MAC-leading 16 doubles, and by infielders Cal Brazier and Aidan Grabowski, who have also been important bats for the Dragons in conference play.

The Dragons have struggled on the mound, with a 6.46 ERA that ranks 10^th in the G-MAC. Johnathon Ray and Scotty Adelman, two returning veterans, are Tiffin's top two weekend starters, with a combined 10-9 record and a combined ERA of roughly 6.30. One of the two should get the start against Northwood, with the other pitching on Thursday. Past those two starters, Tiffin has used a great deal of arms, with nine other pitchers recording at least one start and none more than five. Mason Brunecz, Zach Johnson, Nick Feasel, and Andrew Baileys are the top bullpen arms for the Dragons, and could also be called on to start if Tiffin makes an extended run into the weekend.

Hillsdale returns to Prasco after a year's absence with a substantially different team built around large and talented sophomore and freshman classes. While underclassmen make up the bulk of the roster, Hillsdale does get key contributions from its senior class who are all G-MAC Tourney veterans, including hitters Zak Kent and Augie Hutchison, who have both earned G-MAC Player of the Week honors this season, and key arms in starter Brandon Scott and relivers Andrew George and Drew Erdei.

So far, the Chargers have been led at the plate by Kent, who's having a breakout campaign in his final season with a team-leading .331 batting average, 21 extra base hits, including six home runs, and a Chargers-best 46 RBI, while also earning G-MAC Player of the Week honors three weekends ago. Past Kent, the Chargers are leaning on youth offensively, with three freshmen performing well as every-day players. Outfielder Tyler Sowers is off to an excellent start, hitting .333 with 14 extra base hits, and the Chargers hope to get him back after missing a few games recently with an injury. First baseman Will Lehman has 38 RBIs and also has won a G-MAC Player of the Week Award this season, and Gaard Swenson has a team-leading 12 doubles and a walk-off home run as well. Along with those four players, sophomore Rocco Tenuta (.297, 37 RBIs, team best .429 OBP and five home runs) continues to produce, while Hutchison is coming off the best weekend series of his career, earning G-MAC Player of the Week honors in a split over Ashland, and will play a big role this weekend as well.

On the mound, Hillsdale has a solid ace in sophomore Daniel Higdon, who's got a 4.62 ERA and four wins, and can also turn to veteran Brandon Scott, who has four wins and a 4.62 ERA, and leads the team with 64 strikeouts. Hillsdale's two other starters, sophomore Jacob Pallo and freshman Gibson Cary, played starring roles three weekends ago in a split against Northwood, with Pallo earning G-MAC Pitcher of the Week honors thanks to a one-hitter. With Pallo and Cary's emergence, Hillsdale now has one of the more formidable starting rotations in the conference and the depth to potentially make a deep run. Out of the bullpen, Logan McLaughlin, Hayden Hoffpauir and Andrew George all have had strong appearances, while sophomore Winston Delp, junior Patrick MacLean and Jasiak have steadily improved and become important pieces out of the bullpen as well. Senior Drew Erdei also has come on recently to give the Chargers another option in relief. Hillsdale's staff is backed up by a solid defense, with a .966 fielding percentage.

Hillsdale has a 25-21 edge over Findlay since 2012 in a long-running series dating back to both teams' shared time in the GLIAC prior to joining the G-MAC. The two teams split in a series earlier this season at Findlay, and in 2024, Findlay took three of four games from the Chargers in Hillsdale.