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Lourdes University opened the baseball season with a doubleheader sweep of the University of Michigan-Dearborn on Saturday, defeating the Wolverines 13-3 in the opener before rallying for a 9-8 win in game two at Mercy Field.
 
"I'm very proud of this team tonight," head coach Jeremy Snow said afterwards.  "We jumped ahead early and kept adding on runs in game one.  We were then able to reset for game two, and had to battle.  The energy on the bench led us to the win, as we never gave up in the dugout."
 
Jay Denman (Toledo, Ohio/Saint Francis de Sales H.S.) went 9-for-10 in the doubleheader, including eight hits in his first eight official at bats, with a double, a home run, seven runs scored, and four runs batted in.
 
"Jay carried the load for us for us offensively," Snow stated.  "It seemed like every time he came up it was a big situation and he came through."
 
In the opener, the Gray Wolves took advantage of wildness from Wolverine hurlers, drawing 13 walks, four hit batters, and seven wild pitches in addition to their 11 hits.
 
UM-Dearborn, playing its first games in program history, jumped in front with a run in the opening inning of game one.  Lourdes answered with two in the bottom of the frame before the Wolverines tied the contest in the top of the third.
 
Lourdes broke the game open in the bottom of the third, scoring three times while taking advantage of five free passes.  A two-run double by George Pastor (Walled Lake, Mich./Walled Lake Central H.S.) increased the lead to 7-2 in the fourth.  A Dallas Riggs (Prescott, Ariz./Bradshaw Mountain sacrifice fly in the fifth and three more runs in the sixth pushed the lead to 11-2.
 
After the Wolverines scored a single run in the seventh, Denman led off the bottom of the eighth with a home run and a Glen Crabtree (Medina, Ohio/Black River H.S.) sacrifice fly later in the frame ended the game.
 
Zach Brown (Oregon, Ohio/Clay H.S.) went six innings to earn the win (1-0), allowing just one earned run and scattering three hits while striking out six.
 
"Zach pitched like a number one," Snow added.  "He didn't have his best stuff today, but he competed for us."
 
Denman went 5-for-5 with four runs and three RBI in the opener while Pastor had two hits and two runs batted in.  Crabtree also had two runs batted in.
 
Daniel Kerr had two of the six hits for UM-Dearborn.  Alex Leija suffered the loss (0-1), allowing five runs on just one hit, but walked eight in 2.2 innings of work.
 
The Gray Wolves jumped out to a quick lead in the opening inning of game two.  Three straight hits by Cameron Gallo (Mason, Ohio/Bishop Fenwick H.S.), Crabtree, and Pastor drove home three runs.
 
UM-Dearborn responded with four runs to take the lead in the third, before adding to its advantage with three more tallies in the sixth.
 
Trailing 7-3, Lourdes got one run back in the sixth as Devin Stanley (Euclid, Ohio/Saint Edward H.S.) singled home Crabtree, who led off the inning with a triple.  Gallo plated two more runs on an error in the seventh, in which he was credited with a sacrifice fly when the outfielder dropped a fly ball.
 
In the eighth, Denman delivered a game-tying single with two outs, plating pinch-runner Corey Righman (Ashville, Ohio/Teays Valley H.S.).  Denman then scored himself as Cole Cantelon (Langley, B.C./Brookswood Secondary) delivered a RBI single for his first collegiate hit, putting the Gray Wolves in front 8-7.
 
The Wolverines tied the game in the ninth as Chase Turner led off the inning with a solo home run, and the game headed to extra frames.
 
In the tenth, Denman walked with two outs and scored on a double down the rightfield line by Cantelon, giving Lourdes its first 2-0 start in program history.
 
Denman finished 4-for-5 in the nightcap with three runs scored while Cantelon had three hits and two RBI.  Gallo also drove home two in the victory.
 
Adam Hoyos (Oro Valley, Ariz./Canyon Del Oro H.S.) tossed two scoreless innings of relief to earn the win (1-0), striking out two of the six batters he faced.  Cameron Winn suffered the loss (0-1) for the Wolverines.
 
Lourdes (2-0, 2-0 WHAC) and UM-Dearborn (0-2, 0-2) will close out their three-game weekend series on Sunday afternoon at Mercy Field.  First pitch is set for 1 p.m.