V-Hawks Split Series with Calumet on the Road

WHITING, Ind. -- The V-Hawks traveled east this weekend to face off against the Crimson Wave of Calumet. In their competitions, the V-Hawks came away with two wins and two losses for a series split. With the weekend series, the V-Hawks improve to 7-26 on the season and 6-17 in conference action. 

GAME ONE (VU 5, CALUMET 6)

In the first game of the series, the V-Hawks struck first, scoring their first run in the top of the third inning on a Xavier Gilmore fly that ran in Hunter Hess. The Crimson Wave responded with one of their own in the bottom of the third. The V-Hawks turned it around again, scoring two runs in the top of the fourth. Caden Besemer singled to run in Esteban Sanchez, while Dane Mediger ran in Derick Cossio. The V-Hawks held off the Crimson Wave for a couple of innings before scoring again in the sixth. In the top of the sixth, Dane Mediger doubled to run in Derick Cossio, taking the 4-1 lead. The V-Hawks struggled in the sixth inning, letting up five runs for the Crimson Wave and falling to a 6-4 deficit. In the top of the seventh, Xavier Gilmore had a single-run homer, but the V-Hawks couldn't catch up, falling 6-5 in nine innings. 

The V-Hawks were led at the plate by Xavier Gilmore and Dane Mediger. Each had two hits and two RBIs for the game. Other hits came from Ryder Mortensen, Derick Cossio, Caden Besemer, and Hunter Hess. Brandon Shepherd started in the circle for the V-Hawks, allowing six runs and seven hits. He threw 85 pitches resulting in 56 strikes. Spencer Hautamaki relieved Shepherd to pitch two innings, allowing just one hit. He threw 31 pitches for 18 strikes. 

GAME TWO (VU 1, CALUMET 0)

The second game of the day was a defensive showdown. Both teams were keeping it tight on scoring, but the V-Hawks eventually took the edge in the third inning. Hunter Hess flied out, running in Jake Ulbert for the only run of the game for either team. The game was led by an impressive full-game performance from Nick Colker. Colker pitched the entire game, only allowing two hits and zero runs. He faced 24 batters, and he threw 103 pitches that resulted in 66 strikes for a total of five strikeouts. At the plate, the only hits of the day came from Xavier Gilmore, Esteban Sanchez, Carson Reinhardt, and Jake Ulbert, while the only RBI of the game came from Hunter Hess. 

GAME THREE (VU 1, CALUMET 6)

On the second day, the V-Hawks returned for the third game of the series, falling to the Crimson Wave. The Crimson Wave struck first, scoring a run in the third inning. The V-Hawks responded with one run in the fifth inning when Ryder Mortensen singled to left field, running in Matt Monaghan. The V-Hawks struggled to score again, and the team allowed five more runs from the Crimson Wave through the next four innings. The team eventually fell in the third game 6-1. 

At the plate, the V-Hawks were led by Cody Lozano. Cody had two hits on four at-bat appearances. Other hits came from Hunter Hess, Ryder Mortensen, Esteban Sanchez, Carson Reinhardt, Caden Besemer, and Matt Monaghan. At the mound, Luke Widerholt led off for the V-Hawks, pitching just over six innings. He allowed five runs and eight hits. Luke threw 100 pitches for 64 strikes, facing 30 batters on the game. Aiden Murphy came in to close the game, allowing one run and one hit. He threw 22 pitches for 12 strikes over the course of seven batters. 

GAME FOUR (VU 15, CALUMET 2)

In the final game of the series, the V-Hawks put on an offensive clinic, showing off their hot bats for the fourth game. The first run for the V-Hawks came on a homer from Xavier Gilmore in the first inning. In the second inning, Gabe Kahl ran in Eli Tucker for the second run of the game. In the bottom of the second, Calumet scored their only two runs of the game. Neither team scored in the third or the fourth inning. At the top of the fifth, the V-Hawks scored once again when Ashton Duvall ran in Xavier Gilmore. 

In the sixth inning, the V-Hawks exploded, putting up ten runs in the inning. 

• The first run came on a walk that advanced Eli Tucker home. 
• The second run came on a Xavier Gilmore ground out that ran in Gabe Kahl. 
• The third and fourth runs came on an Armani Camus double that ran in Ryan Mesa and Jake Ulbert. 
• The fifth run came on a walk that advanced Armani Camus home.
• The sixth run came on an Eli Tucker RBI that brought in Derick Cossio. 
• The seventh run came from a Gabe Kahl single that ran in Ashton Duvall. 
• The final three runs of the inning came on a massive Jake Ulbert homer that ran in Gabe Kahl and Eli Tucker as well as himself. 

In the seventh inning, the V-Hawks put the cherry on top with one final run. Roberto Echevarria grounded out, running in Armani Camus to take the 15-2 victory over the Crimson Wave. 

At the plate, the V-Hawks were led by Armani Camus and Gabe Kahl, each with two hits and two RBIs. Other hits came from Xavier Gilmore, Esteban Sanchez, Ashton Duvall, Jaden Vanderwiere, and Jake Ulbert. Adam Olson pitched the full game for the V-Hawks, allowing only two runs and four hits. He threw three strikeouts against 31 batters faced. In total, he pitched 86 times for 55 strikes on the game. 

UP NEXT

The V-Hawks will play at home on Tuesday, April 14th as they take on Waldorf for a 3PM single game.