The day after an amazing hitting display that yielded 16 runs and 18 hits, the Ashland University Eagles were beat down 6-2 by the Saginaw Valley State Cardinals.

Starter Derek Baker allowed five runs over four and two-thirds innings before being pulled. He walked two and struck out three over that frame. 

“You gotta give their guys a lot of credit,” said manager John Schaly. “They came out and played a good ball game. I thought we competed better than we did yesterday in the batter’s box though.”  

The Eagles were unable to solve Cardinal ace Michael Ellenbest as he went seven innings without allowing a run and struck out six.

Relief pitcher Jack Ferguson gave up two runs in the ninth inning but got the final six outs for the Cardinals.

Carsten Dembeck had the best day batting for the Eagles as he went 2-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout.

Nick Edwards also had a great day hitting the ball with a triple and a two run RBI single in the ninth inning.

The rest of the Eagle batters just could not get much going throughout the day, though they had their chances.

The Eagles had the bases loaded three times during the game but it wasn’t until the ninth inning that they were able to get runs across. 

“We had some chances but I thought our hitters did a better job in the box today,” said Schaly. “We had some chances against a good pitcher.”

The Eagles return to action tomorrow for the final game against the Cardinals in their three-game series. The game will start at 1 pm.