Big Weekend Puts ACC in First Place
SANDUSKY, Ohio — The Alpena Community College baseball team delivered a statement opening weekend in MCCAA Northern Conference play, going 4-1 at the round-robin tournament held at Sports Force Parks at Cedar Point Sports Center. The Lumberjacks are tied for first place in the MCCAA Northern Conference standings heading into conference play proper.
Over five games across Friday and Saturday, ACC batted .336 as a team, scored 34 runs, hit five home runs, and stole 12 bases — a complete offensive performance powered by a deep, dangerous lineup and a rotation that competed in every game.
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Game 1: ACC 7, Bay College Norse 6
The Lumberjacks opened conference play with a back-and-forth battle against Bay College that showcased both the ceiling of this offense and its ability to deliver in the clutch.
Marcus Castellon staked ACC to the lead in the fourth inning with a solo home run, but Bay College answered with a three-run fourth and a two-run fifth to take a 6-5 lead heading into the seventh. That's when Aiden Bishop put the Lumberjacks on his back, launching a two-run home run to right field to give ACC the 7-6 lead it would not relinquish.
Castellon was the offensive engine throughout — he went 2-for-4 with two home runs and four RBI, including an inside-the-park blast in the fifth inning with two runners on that turned a 1-1 tie into a 5-4 ACC lead. Kaden Benaske tripled and scored in the second.
Lane Gross started and worked five innings, striking out seven in what was a competitive start against a Bay College offense that stayed aggressive all night. McQuillin came on in the sixth and was dominant, retiring all six batters he faced with four strikeouts to earn the win.
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Game 2: ACC 10, Muskegon CC Jayhawks 7
The Lumberjacks returned for a second game Friday afternoon and put together their most complete offensive performance of the weekend, rolling past Muskegon CC 10-7 behind a balanced attack and a quality six-inning start from Jacob Brohl.
Brohl allowed four earned runs on five hits and earned the win, keeping Muskegon at bay long enough for the bats to build a comfortable cushion. The offense broke through in the third inning with a three-run frame built around an Aiden Bishop bases-clearing double that scored three — Bishop finished with four RBI for the game. Miguel Salcedo drove in two more with a home run in the fifth that pushed the lead to 6-4. Benaske capped the scoring in the seventh with a two-run blast to right field, his second home run in as many games. Nate Gould contributed a two-run double in the fourth.
Charlie Best came on in relief and closed it out cleanly to pick up the save.
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Game 3: ACC 5, GRCC Raiders 4
Day two opened Saturday afternoon with the tightest game of the weekend — a hard-fought 5-4 win over Grand Rapids Community College in which the Lumberjacks had to grind for every run.
Kaleb Donajkowski was sharp in his six-inning start, limiting the Raiders to two earned runs on seven hits while striking out five. He navigated traffic throughout — GRCC left 11 runners on base — and gave ACC every opportunity to win.
The Lumberjacks struck for three in the second inning on an AJ Wheelock RBI single, a Ryley White scamper home off a wild pitch, and a Maxwell McCarty RBI single that made it 3-1. Castellon's RBI double in the seventh extended the lead to 5-2.
GRCC made things interesting in the bottom of the seventh, pulling within 5-4 on a two-run double. McQuillin came on and induced a game-ending play — Lumberjack rightfielder Nate Gould threw out a Raider baserunner attempting to score from second on a single — preserving the ACC win.
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Game 4: Mid Michigan Lakers 9, ACC 6
The Lumberjacks' only loss of the weekend came Saturday evening against Mid Michigan, in a game where a disastrous eight-run fifth inning — fueled in part by three ACC errors — proved too much to overcome.
Ivan Kosmerick started and was effective through four innings with five strikeouts, but ran into a wall in the fifth as Mid Michigan batted around with ten men to the plate, scoring eight times. ACC had led 4-1 heading into that inning on the strength of a four-run second — a productive frame that saw Gould single in a run and a balk and a stolen base force in additional runs. In the sixth, White tripled home two runs to make it 9-6, but the Lumberjacks couldn't get any closer.
The loss was a lesson in never taking a lead for granted — and a reminder that this team still has room to grow in execution under pressure. They answered that challenge in the final game of the weekend.
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Game 5: ACC 6, Delta College 5
In the tournament finale on Sunday, the Lumberjacks put together their most prolific offensive output of the weekend — 13 hits — and their most dramatic finish to close the tournament with four wins.
Best started and struck out six in five innings of work as ACC jumped out to a 5-1 lead through three innings. A three-run second inning saw McCarty single home a run, while the third inning featured Gould's RBI double and another White steal of home off a wild pitch to make it 5-1.
Delta College fought back with four runs in the sixth to tie the game at 5-5. The game went to the seventh still in doubt — and that's when the Lumberjacks delivered. White singled and stole second, and then Gould lined a walk-off RBI single to left field to give ACC the 6-5 win and the 4-1 weekend mark.
Zachary Holifield pitched a scoreless seventh inning, stranding the bases loaded and striking out two to preserve the win.
---Weekend at a Glance
| Date | Opponent | Result |
|------|----------|--------|
| 3/20 | Bay College Norse | **W, 7-6** |
| 3/20 | Muskegon CC Jayhawks | **W, 10-7** |
| 3/21 | GRCC Raiders | **W, 5-4** |
| 3/21 | Mid Michigan Lakers | L, 6-9 |
| 3/22 | Delta College | **W, 6-5** |
Team Totals (5 games): .336 BA | .440 OBP | .995 OPS | 46 H | 34 R | 5 HR | 11 2B | 2 3B | 29 RBI | 17 BB | 12 SB
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Standout Performers
Nate Gould emerged as the weekend's most consistent offensive weapon, going 7-for-14 (.500) with three doubles, four RBI, and four runs scored across five games. He drove in the walk-off run against Delta College and contributed throughout the lineup in every game. He also saved the game against GRCC, throwing out the potential tying run at the plate from right field to end the ballgame.
Marcus Castellon was the weekend's most explosive presence, going 6-for-18 (.333) with two home runs, three doubles, and five RBI. His two-homer, four-RBI performance against Bay College — including an inside-the-park blast that turned the game — set the offensive tone for the entire weekend.
AJ Wheelock hit .444 (4-for-9) with two doubles, an RBI, and a .583 OBP, reaching base at a high clip in each of his four appearances and anchoring the lower third of the lineup.
Ryley White, appearing primarily as a courtesy runner and late-game substitute, was one of the most impactful players of the weekend despite just five plate appearances. He scored seven runs, went 3-for-4 (.750) with a triple and two RBI, stole four bases, and scored on a steal of home in both the GRCC and Delta College games. His walk-off sequence Sunday — single, stolen base, score on Gould's walk-off single — was the perfect exclamation point.
Mason McQuillin was the most effective reliever of the weekend, going 3.0 innings across two appearances and striking out four. He earned the win in Game 1 against Bay College, coming on with ACC trailing and retiring all six batters he faced over two innings, then returned in Game 3 to nail down the save against GRCC with a game-ending play at the plate. He also stole a base and scored a run in the finale against Delta.
Jacob Brohl delivered the most valuable starting pitching performance, going six full innings against Muskegon while working out of trouble and keeping the Lumberjacks in position to win a game that could have slipped away.
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The Lumberjacks now enter the full MCCAA Northern Conference schedule as co-leaders, with confidence earned across five competitive games. Sports Force Parks provided a worthy stage for what became a defining opening weekend — and this ACC team looks ready to compete in this MCCAA Northern Conference campaign.