HOLLAND, Mich.-- After dropping game one, Trine struck back to earn the game two victory and split with Hope in the MIAA-opening doubleheader for both teams Saturday afternoon at Boeve Stadium.
Pitching was the dominating theme in both contests. The Flying Dutchmen earned a 4-0 victory in game one, before Eddie Tomich (Carmel, Ind./Westfield) led the Thunder to a 5-1 game two victory with a complete game effort. Tomich and Andy Farrell (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio/St. Vincent St. Mary) combined to hold a Dutch offense that was batting .347 entering the contest to just 10 hits on the afternoon. Currey Thomas tossed the complete game shutout in game one to earn the victory for Hope. Trine is now 5-7 on the season and 1-1 in the MIAA. The Flying Dutchman are 6-3 overall, 1-1 in conference play.
Game One: Hope 4, Trine 0
Thomas' three-hit shutout and some timely hitting were the recipe for success for Hope in game one.
Thomas walked three and struck out five to improve to 2-0 in the season. He did not allow a hit until a Jake LaBounty (Avon, Ind./Covenant Christian) single to lead off the fifth.
The Flying Dutchmen hit three home runs in the contest. Tyler Gulick hit a two-run homer to right-center in the bottom of the third to make the score 2-0 and added solo shot in the sixth. Brady Vanderweele added another solo homer in the sixth for the final margin.
Farrell scattered five hits and struck out four in the effort.
Game Two: Trine 5, Hope 1
Tomich took charge on the mound and the Thunder bats came through with some timely hits to lead Trine to the split.
Gulick was in the middle of the lone Dutch rally of the game. He singled and stole second in front of Devin Schaefers, who came through with an RBI-single to put Hope up 1-0 in the third.
Trine scored a run in every inning from there on out, beginning with Drew Palmer (Hartford, Wisc./Hartford Union) scoring on an error to tie the score in the fourth.
A one-out walk drawn by Colton Conn (Cincinnati, Ohio/Indian Hill) jump-started a two-out rally in the fifth. Ethan Prebynski (Auburn, Ind./DeKalb) followed with a triple to right to put the Thunder ahead. After Jordan Baer (Fort Wayne, Ind./Leo) drew a walk to extend the inning, Palmer ripped a single to center to put the Thunder up 3-1.
Kyle Auernhamer (Vassar, Mich./Vassar) doubled home a run in the sixth and Zach Thorn (Portage, Ind./Portage) drew a bases-loaded walk in the seventh to force home the final Trine run.
Tomich scattered five hits over his second complete game victory of the season. The senior struck out four and finished strong, recording three of the final five outs via strikeout. Tomich is 2-2 on the season.
The MIAA series concludes Monday as Hope visits Jannen Field for a doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m. The games will be the home opener for the Thunder.