Edwardsburg wins Wolverine Conference crown

Published 10:06 am Thursday, May 23, 2019

EDWARDSBURG — The Edwardsburg baseball team improved to 23-5 with a sweep of visiting South Haven to win another Wolverine Conference championship.

The Eddies have now won five consecutive championships and six out of the last seven titles.

Edwardsburg did not get off to a fast start this season, but by continuing to work hard and improve each and every day, the Eddies have become one of the area’s best teams once again.

“We started out slow this year, but have really improved throughout the season putting us in position to win the conference title,” said veteran Edwardsburg coach A.J. Gaideski. “The players worked their tails off to get in position for the crown and they finished the job off by going 15-3 for first place in the Wolverine. We practice every day to go 1-0 on game day. We try to take advantage of every practice and game to help prepare us for tournament play. We hope to be playing our best baseball by the end of the year.”

Otsego finished second at 10-3 and Plainwell third at 9-4.

Last Friday, the Eddies swept Paw Paw 5-3 and 10-5 in league play.

Tuesday night, Edwardsburg defeated South Haven 6-3 in the opening game as Jonah Sibley and Brayden Burgess combined on a six-hitter with eight strikeouts.

The Eddies had eight hits against the Rams, including two each by Colby Sidenbender and Mac Gaideski. Gaideski doubled and drove in a pair of runs.

In the nightcap, Edwardsburg blew out South Haven 11-1 in a five-inning contest.

Gaideski tossed a three-hitter with five strikeouts for the victory.

The Eddies had 11 hits, all singles.

Gaideski helped his own cause by going 3-for-3 with a pair of RBIs. Sidenbender and Connor Ostrander each finished with a pair of hits. Sibley drove in three runs.

“Our players played well Tuesday night against South Haven,” Gaideski said. “We were doing the little things correctly, putting the ball in play, getting runners in from third base and throwing strikes.”

The Eddies traveled to Gull Lake Wednesday for a non-conference doubleheader against the Blue Devils before hosting Lakeshore today.