PAINESVILLE, OHIO – Sophomores Michael Backes (Hubbard, Ohio/Hubbard) and Glenn Stewart (Strattanville, Pa./Clarion Limestone) each entered Sunday's (April 18) doubleheader against visiting Gannon University with an 0-3 record on the season. But each exited with a complete game victory as the Lake Erie College baseball team took both games, 8-2 and 11-2, to split the weekend series at Braggs Field at Kiwanis Recreation Park.

Each pitcher allowed two runs in their seven innings, becoming the first pair of Storm (14-23) starters to hurl complete game victories consecutively since April 26, 2004 (Brad Crail, Jon Thompson vs. D'Youville College). It was the first time Lake Erie has had two straight complete games of any kind since the 2006 season.

In the opener, Backes (1-3) worked around several jams by getting Gannon hitters to ground into double plays three times. He allowed two earned runs, coming on a fourth-inning home run by Jeff Jones, on six hits. He walked four and struck out three. 

The Storm offense did its part to back him, scoring in all but one inning. Juniors Brandon James (Mentor, Ohio/Mentor) and Nick Lovick (Mentor, Ohio/Mentor) hit back-to-back sacrifice flies in the first inning to give LEC the lead. Lovick added another RBI with a ground out in the third and sophomore Matt Toth (Lorain, Ohio/Admiral King), who had three hits in the game, had a two-run single in the fourth. 

Freshman Cody Blood (Conneaut, Ohio/Conneaut), who also had three hits, led off the seventh with his second homer of the year and James drove in another run with a single later in the inning. 

Jones had two hits for Gannon (20-18). Evan Euler (2-3) took the loss, despite going the distance. He allowed eight runs- four earned- on 12 hits. The Knights committed four errors in the game.

Stewart (1-3) held Gannon off the board through the first four innings of game two as the Storm clung to a 2-0 lead. But in the bottom of the fourth, Lake Erie scored nine times to break the game open.

Thirteen men came to the plate with eight getting hits off three different Gannon pitchers in the inning. Lovick and sophomore Matt Vanni (Willowick, Ohio/Benedictine) each had two-run hits in the frame while sophomore Matt Morgan (Indian Lake, Ohio/Russells Point), who reached base with two hits and a walk in the game, scored twice in the Storm's highest scoring inning of the season.

The Knights scored two unearned runs in the fifth, but Stewart settled back down and

allowed just one hit over the final 2 1/3 innings. He scattered six hits and only walked one with two strikeouts. He also hit a batter. 

Four players had two hits for the Storm in the nightcap, including Toth who had five hits total after having his eight-game hit streak stopped on Saturday. James, Lovick and sophomore Matt Lott (Newark, Ohio/Newark Catholic) each drove in two runs.

Lake Erie is off until it returns to the site of its biggest win of the season on Wednesday, April 21, when it travels to All Pro Freight Stadium in Avon to face Notre Dame College at 5 p.m.

-LEC-