April 27, 2023, ESCANABA, Mich. – The Grand Rapids Community College baseball team earned a conference championship after sweeping Bay College on Thursday, 3-1 in eight innings and 5-4.
The softball team also fared well on the road trip to Michigan's Upper Peninsula, sweeping a doubleheader.
"It's a great feeling to win another conference title, but this group of men know that's not our end goal," head coach Mike Eddington said. “We have the talent to go very far this year and I'm excited to see how we perform in regionals next weekend."
GRCC clinched its 32nd conference championship since 1962 after an extra-inning win in game one after freshman Trevin Laming hit a two-run home run, his team-leading seventh homer of the season. Laming went a team-high three-for-four at the plate.
MCCAA Northern Conference Player of the Week Jerad Berkenpas went the distance, striking out 10 and giving up just three hits.
Catcher Dylan Chargo's double in the sixth scored the Raiders’ first run.
In the nightcap, GRCC jumped out to a 4-0 lead before Bay College tied the game in the bottom of the third.
Starter Connor Foley fanned eight batters. Reliever Ethan London pitched the final four innings to pick up the victory, allowing just two hits while walking six.
Laming, Jake Gumieny and Xander Reisbig all had two hits for GRCC.
The softball team won both of its games too, with an exciting win in a back-and-forth game two.
Izzy Regner picked up her 17th win of the season in an 8-2 opening game victory. Seven of her 15 strikeouts came in the first two innings.
GRCC had 11 hits, with Madi Lemke, Jaye Guichelaar and Samara Kolehouse each having two hits.
Bay College jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the nightcap before GRCC scored nine straight runs to take a 9-4 lead.
The Norse tacked on three runs in the fourth and then two more in the fifth to tie the game at nine.
Brynn McArthur gave the Raiders the lead again with her third home run of the season, a two-run shot in the sixth.
Annika Roersma and Guichelaar added home runs of their own in the seventh and GRCC won 15-9.
Macy Huver picked up the win after pitching the first five innings. Regner picked up her second save of the season, striking out three and giving up no hits in the final two innings.
Both teams are planning on playing triple-headers on Friday with the first games starting at 11 a.m.
This story was reported by Ben Brown.