GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Indiana Tech erased an early two-run deficit and took control with a three-run fourth inning Saturday, defeating Lawrence Tech 6-4 in Grand Rapids. The decisive stretch came after the Blue Devils had gone in front twice, only to see Indiana Tech turn a 3-2 game into a 5-3 lead and then add an insurance run in the sixth.
Lawrence Tech opened sharply in the bottom of the first. Luke Weinberger singled and advanced on an error, Brady Lee followed with a single and later stole second, and Brady Rogers drove in Weinberger with a single. Justin Baird then added an RBI ground-out, giving the Blue Devils a 2-0 lead. Indiana Tech answered in the top of the third, on an error and later scored on a RBI single. Later in the inning a fielder's choice tied the game at 2-2.
The Blue Devils responded in the bottom half of the third. Ty Schornak singled and later scored on an RBI single by Isaiah Logan, pushing Lawrence Tech back in front, 3-2. But Indiana Tech delivered the game's biggest swing in the fourth. With a double to right-center, a single, and a two-run single to left-center for a 5-3 advantage.
Lawrence Tech kept pressure on throughout the afternoon and finished with 12 hits, compared with eight for Indiana Tech, but could not fully overcome the visitors' timely offense. Brayden Bess scored in the bottom of the sixth after reaching earlier in the inning, and Weinberger brought him home with a ground-out to trim the margin to 5-4. Indiana Tech answered immediately in the top of the sixth with a single, later scored, and with an RBI single to restore a two-run cushion at 6-4.
The Blue Devils drew only one walk but collected two doubles, stole four bases and committed just one error, while Indiana Tech overcame three errors by pairing seven walks with five stolen bases. Weinberger paced Lawrence Tech's offense with two hits and an RBI, and the Blue Devils twice cut into the deficit after falling behind. Still, Indiana Tech's middle-inning push proved enough in a game that saw both teams leave 11 runners on base. Lawrence Tech's last run came on Weinberger's sixth-inning RBI ground-out, but the Blue Devils were held scoreless the rest of the way as Indiana Tech finished off the 6-4 result.
