ASHLAND, Ohio - The Saginaw Valley State University baseball team started GLIAC play this afternoon by getting swept at the hands of the Ashland Eagles on a cool, mid-30 degree day.

Game One: Ashland 9, SVSU 2 (Box Score)

Saginaw Valley fell behind early when the Eagles put up four runs in the third inning after a pair of singles and a hit by pitch.

RBI singles in the fourth and fifth innings off the bats of Chet LaFave (Charlotte, Mich.) and Michael Craig (Milan, Mich.) managed to cut the deficit to 5-2 after five innings of action.

Ashland responded with another four-spot in the sixth inning to put the contest away and picked up the 9-2 victory.

LaFave and Craig both led the Cardinal offense with two hits apiece.

Game Two: Ashland 5, SVSU 4 (Box Score)

Ashland struck early again in game two with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the first for the 1-0 edge.

Kyle O'Boyle (Midland, Mich. / Bullock Creek) knotted up the contest at 1-1 with a sacrifice fly of his own in the third inning, scoring Dylin Eschenburg (Shelby Township, Mich. / Eisenhower).

The Saginaw Valley bats came alive in the fourth inning with a clutch two out rally to take a 4-2 advantage. Eschenburg came through with an RBI double to plate Niko Gonzalez (Rochester, Mich. / Stoney Creek). Brad Schalk (Sterling Heights, Mich. / Bishop Foley) followed Eschenburg with a two-RBI double to give SVSU the lead when Eschenburg and Ryan Hotmer (Walbridge, Ohio / Lake) came around to score.

However, the Eagles put together a two-out rally of their own in the bottom half of the fourth to tie up the contest at 4-4. Ashland pushed across the game-winning run in the fifth inning with a sacrifice fly as the SVSU offense was unable to forge a comeback.

Eschenburg and Hotmer each posted two RBI to lead the Cardinals in game two.

SVSU will be back in action tomorrow (March 24) for the weekend series finale at Ashland starting at noon.