The Saline Reporter
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Saline continues roll vs. Huron
By Jerry Hinnen, Staff Writer
PUBLISHED: April 26, 2007
After three games, the Saline baseball team's record stood at 1-2. Seven games later, that record looks very, very different.
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The Hornets have swept three straight double-headers, put together a seven-game winning streak, and now stand at 8-2. That eighth win was arguably the Hornets' most impressive, as senior Jon Endicott threw a six-inning no-hitter and Saline crushed Ann Arbor Huron in game 2 of their Tuesday doubleheader, 13-0.
"It feels great," Endicott said of tossing the no-hitter, which he accomplished in just 59 pitches. "We took two today from a pretty good team. We're having fun out there and just playing good team baseball."
Saline head coach Scott Thiesen was happy with Endicott's performance and his team's play during their streak, but also pointed out that the Hornets still have a lot of work to do this season.
"We're in it for the long haul," he said. "We're getting some timely hits, not making too many mistakes, playing some pretty good defense ... but we have to keep it in perspective. We haven't accomplished anything yet."
The Hornets never trailed in either half of their road sweep of Huron. In game 1, a two-out error gave Saline a chance to rip off four consecutive singles, including a two-RBI hit by Josh Burd that put the visitors ahead 4-0. Huron cut the lead to 4-2 in the third, but Brad Guenther added a two-run double in the fourth for all the runs Saline would need.
Jeff Baublit got the start and pitched six strong innings, giving up three runs, one earned. Derek Fairchild gave up a pair of hits and a run in the seventh but stranded two runners for the save and the 6-4 win.
In game 2, Endicott walked the Huron leadoff hitter and went on to retire the next 15 River Rat batters until walking the first batter of the top of the sixth.
By that time, Saline had built an insurmountable 13-run lead. Nick Poloni's second-inning double drove in Baublit for the game's first run, followed by a two-RBI double by Ben Sutton, a sacrifice fly by Kory Gainey, another run-scoring double by Fairchild, and another by Dishman to cap a six-run inning.
The Hornets pushed the lead to 9-0 in the fourth. Dishman drove in Gainey with a sacrifice fly, following a stolen base Fairchild scored on a Baublit single, and Baublit went on to score on a wild pitch. Endicott added an RBI triple in the top of the sixth and Poloni capped the offensive outburst with a solo home run.
That put Saline's lead over the 10-run mercy-rule cutoff and set the table for Endicott. Following the sixth-inning walk he forced a double play and struck out the next batter to complete the no-hitter.
"I felt better as the game went along," he said afterward. "I was able to get ahead in the count and the guys behind me made some great plays. I couldn't have done it without them."
The fourth and fifth games in Saline's streak came at the expense of Lincoln, who the Hornets defeated 5-1 and 8-0 in Ypsilanti Thursday. Aaron Nagy pitched 5 1/3 innings for the game 1 win, helped by Guenther's fifth inning RBI single to break a 1-1 tie.
In game 2, Burd threw a five-hit six-inning shutout for the win. Eight different Hornets collected hits in the victory.
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