Allendale, MI - In the final game of the four against the Grand Valley State Lakers, the Parkside Rangers displayed their resilience in a thrilling come-from-behind victory. Parkside was ignited by a pair of home runs and a five run ninth inning, en route to an 13-11 victory.
How it happened:
The back-and-forth, gut-wrenching battle between the Rangers and Lakers began with fireworks in the opening inning. After Parkside got a run across on the first error of five from the Lakers, they responded with five runs of their own. The Lakers led 5-1 after the first inning and made their statement.
Despite the Lakers hot start, the story of the game was Parkside's ability to fight over and over again. In the second inning, Owen Brock got the Rangers right back on the board with an RBI single, driving in Joe Hoeks for their second run of the game.
In the third inning, Parkside went right back to work. After John St. Clair reached on yet another error from the Lakers, it scored Parkside's third run of the game. The very next hitter, Carter Storti, made the Lakers pay with a game-tying two-run blast over the left field fence. It was Storti's second home run of the season and the score was tied at five after three innings of baseball.
Parkside kept rolling in the fourth inning as they crossed two more runs in the inning. Angel Rades smoked an RBI single into right center field, scoring Owen Brock to give the Rangers their first lead since the first inning. Later in the inning, John St. Clair scored Peter Fusek on a sacrifice-fly. Parkside led 7-5 after the top of the fourth.
On the mound, Noah Gerritson entered in the second inning and provided three solid innings of relief. He struck out two batters and surrendered just two hits and no earned runs. However, two unearned runs came in the bottom of the fourth inning and tied the game at seven.
Parkside Swanson picked up where Gerritson left on the mound and provided three and two-thirds of work out of Parkside's bullpen. After a clean fifth inning, Parkside found themselves back in the scoring column. Andrew Harris led the inning off with an opposite field, go-ahead solo home run to boost Parkside ahead, 8-7. It was Harris' second long ball of the series and a Parkside best fifth of the season.
Fast-forward to the eighth inning where the Lakers made a dent in the ballgame. They scored four runs off Swanson and jumped out to an 11-8 lead.
With their backs against the wall and just three outs to play with, the Rangers did what they've been doing all game long, and that's battle. After St. Clair led the ninth inning off with a double, Storti struck again. He singled up the middle for his third RBI of the game, bringing the Rangers within two runs. With the help of multiple errors in the inning on behalf of the Lakers, Parkside loaded up the bases with just one out. Camden Kearney came off the bench and drew a five-pitch walk making the score 11-10. Next was Peter Fusek who tied the game with a sacrifice-fly, scoring Koto Sato from third.
Parkside was not done, as Angel Rades reached on the third Lakers error of the inning. This error allowed Owen Brock to score and the Rangers took the lead right back. Andrew Harris provided some insurance as he smoked an RBI single into right field. It was Harris' third hit of the game and it scored Kearney, giving Parkside a 13-11 advantage. It capped a five-run ninth inning for the Rangers.
After recording his first collegiate save just a day ago, Leo Burger went out once again in pursuit of earning another save. After walking the first two hitters of the inning, Burger locked in and punched out the next three hitters in order to seal the deal.
Nathan Ciemny, who recorded the final out in the eighth inning, recorded the win on the mound. With the thrilling victory, Parkside improved to 14-15 overall and 3-8 in GLIAC play.
Next:
Parkside will return home for a four game series with No. 17 Wayne State. They will play a game on Friday, a double header on Saturday, and the finale on Sunday. For coverage of the events, visit ParksideRangers.com/coverage.
