ONEKAMA —By GREG GIELCZYK, Sports Editor. With an important Western Michigan D League baseball doubleheader coming up Wednesday against Free Soil, Onekama coach John Neph rolled the dice and rested his regular starting pitchers for Monday’s twin bill with the Manistee Catholic Central Sabers.

The Portagers won the first game, 8-4, while the Sabers rallied for three runs in the top of the sixth inning to take the nightcap, 6-5. Onekama is now 14-4 for the season.

Neph will take the split.

“We had a couple of well played games by both teams, and that should help get us ready for Wednesday,” Neph said. “Free Soil is only a game behind us, and so is Brethren.

“It’s going to be a big doubleheader for us, and I wanted to be sure that my regular starters have fresh arms, and their full complement of innings to pitch.”

Nate Griswold picked up the win in the first game, with relief help from Tyler Miller.

The Sabers scored three runs in the first inning.

Braden Russell led off the game with a home run, giving Neph an early feeling of anxiety.

Neph’s queasy stomach wasn’t helped any when, following a single by Jordan Janowiak, starting pitcher Andy Espvik smashed a two-run homer for the Sabers.

Onekama managed to get one run back in the bottom of the inning when Matt Fredericks had a run-scoring single.

The Portagers tied the game with two runs in the third.

Dave Gillespie, playing at third base, homered to start the rally for Onekama.

Fredericks singled, stole second and came home on a base hit by Griswold. Griswold scored later in the inning to make the score 3-3.

Russell scored in the fourth inning to send the Sabers back into the lead, 4-3.

But, the Portagers answered with a run in the bottom of the fourth to tie it again, 4-4, on a bases loaded walk that brought in Jim Kosiboski.

Onekama scored four runs on five consecutive base hits in the bottom of the fifth to take its 8-4 lead.

Gillespie finished the game with two hits for the Portagers. Tayler Fraly also had two base hits. They were the only players with more than one hit in the game for Onekama.

The Sabers jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning of the nightcap.

But the Portagers came back with three runs in the bottom of the first to take the lead, 3-2.

Manistee Catholic scored two runs in the second to go back in front, 4-3. Janowiak had a two-out single to highlight the Sabers’ rally.

Onekama put three more runs up on the board in the bottom of the third. Fredericks, Griswold and Justin Sedelmaier all singled and scored for the Portagers.

Chris Ludwig and Russell singled, while Joel Carter doubled as the Sabers scored three runs in the top of the sixth.

The Portagers had the tying run at third, and the winning run with Fredericks at the plate. Fredericks, however, flied out to center to end the game.

Russell and Carter were both 2-for-4 to lead the Sabers. Espvik, Garrett Owens and Derek Edmondson were all 1-for-4, while Ludwig went 1-for-3.

Onekama is 8-2 in the conference, and hosts Free Soil in a doubleheader Wednesday afternoon.

—— Contact Greg Gielczyk at: sportsmna@pioneergroup.net

Photos by Barb

May 8, 2006

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