Baseball team swept at Calvin, 10-1 and 7-3

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Olivet College baseball team was swept by Calvin College in a Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) doubleheader today in Grand Rapids. The Knights won by scores of 10-1 and 7-3.

In the opener, the Comets scored their only run in the first inning. Sophomore Luke Spotts led off the game with an infield single, stole second base, went to third base on junior Austin Cleaver's single and scored on senior Stephen Botti's sacrifice fly.

Calvin took a 2-1 lead with a pair of runs in the second and extended its lead to 6-1 with a four-run third inning. Olivet had the bases loaded in the fourth but a fly out ended the inning. The Knights capped their scoring with a four spot in the fifth inning.

The Comets finished the game with eight hits, all singles. Cleaver led the way, going 2-for-4. Senior Colin Boak was the losing pitcher after allowing five earned runs on six hits in three innings. Sophomore Austin Hickey threw two innings of relief, and senior Nick Taylor tossed one inning.

In the nightcap, Calvin plated a run in the first inning and four runs in the second inning to go up 5-0. Olivet got on the scoreboard for the first time in the fifth inning. Sophomore Colton Dawdy and Spotts hit back-to-back singles. After an out, Cleaver hit an RBI-single to score Dawdy.

The Knights responded with two runs in their half of the fifth to take a 7-1 lead. Three consecutive singles, with the last one by sophomore Connor Murney driving in sophomore Austin Holliday with the first run in the sixth inning. An error allowed a second run to score in the inning.

At the plate, both teams recorded a dozen base hits. For Olivet, eight of the nine starters had at least one hit apiece. Dawdy, Holliday, Murney and sophomore Nick Jones each had two. Senior Mitch Galloway suffered the pitching loss after giving up five runs on six hits in an inning and two-thirds. Three relievers – Taylor and freshmen Gage Roberts and Tommy Kaliszewski – finished the game on the mound. The two freshmen did not surrender a run in three total innings.

The teams will face each other tomorrow for a doubleheader at the Cutler Athletic Complex, starting at 1 p.m.