Wayne State University Athletics

Baseball 4/13/2026 3:00:00 PM Cooper Weidenthaler, Assistant Director for Media Relations

Baseball Travels to Hillsdale for Non-Conference Tilt

The Chargers will come back to Detroit on Tuesday, April 21.

DETROIT -- The Wayne State University baseball squad (26-8 overall, 10-6 GLIAC) will shift out of conference action on Tuesday afternoon for a weekday affair with G-MAC member Hillsdale College (16-19 overall, 11-9 G-MAC) at 4 p.m. inside Lenda and Glenda Hill Stadium and TFO Partners Field.

The Chargers will return the favor the following Tuesday (April 21) to finish the home-and-home series at Harwell Field between the former conference rivals. WSU is 51-28 in games against HC since the 1992 season. The last time these two teams met one another was on February 18, 2024, as part of a four-game neutral site series in Holly Springs, N.C. While the Warriors fell in that most-recent contest (8-6), they still claimed the series 3-1 over the Chargers.

Last Weekend Recap
Wayne State concluded its season-long eight-game home stand by winning a series against Saginaw Valley State inside Harwell Field. WSU claimed the series three games to one, which included victories of 2-1 on Friday, 7-2 in seven innings on Saturday, and 6-2 on Sunday afternoon.

Strong pitching led the way all weekend, as Warrior starters combined to allow just seven earned runs across 24.2 innings pitched between Gavin Nash (Howell, Mich. / Hartland), Will Lowery (Grosse Ile, Mich. [Kalamazoo Valley C.C.]), Keegan Pulford-Thorpe (Aurora, Ont. / Newmarket [Central Florida / Georgia Highlands College]), and Gabe Nazelli (Farmington Hills, Mich. / Detroit Country Day).

Macio Miller (Kimball, Mich. / Marysville [Jackson C.C.]) earned his first save of the season, third of his career, and first in nearly two years by tossing scoreless baseball in the final three innings on Sunday.

Offensively, Owen Tuccinardi (Ann Arbor, Mich. / Skyline) bashed his team-leading seventh home run of 2026 in the Warriors' 7-2 win in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader.

National Spotlight
The successful weekend against SVSU will likely see Wayne State jump up in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) rankings for this week. WSU was ranked 21st in the country in the most recent edition of the rankings. The new list will be released on Wednesday afternoon.

Additionally, the Green and Gold appeared in third for the Midwest Region rankings, behind fellow GLIAC foe Grand Valley State and GLVC member Illinois Springfield. Traditionally, the top two squads in the region earn the opportunity to host a portion of the NCAA Midwest Regional, which this season will be held between Thursday, May 14, and Sunday, May 17.

Scouting Hillsdale
Sitting at 16-19 overall and holding an 11-9 conference mark, the Chargers currently see themselves tied-for-third in the North Division of the G-MAC. Hillsdale is led by fifth-year head coach Tom Vessella, who has guided HC to a 111-127 ledger in his tenure. The Chargers are coming off a series victory at Lake Erie over the weekend. HC lost the opening game 2-1, but won the next three contests by scores of 9-4, 5-1, and 4-3.

Hillsdale's leading batter at the dish is sophomore Gaard Swenson. Swenson is currently hitting at a team-best .345 clip (51-for-148) and is one of just three student-athletes to have started all 35 games in 2026. Swenson also paces HC in hits (51), stolen bases (14), and triples (three). Junior Rocco Tenuta, one of the other two that have played in every game, is first on the squad in OPS (.972), runs scored (30), home runs (five), RBI (33), and slugging percentage (.538). Freshman Nolan Coppens is the team leader in doubles (12) and walks (26).

Of those with at least 15 innings thrown, senior Patrick MacLean is the only one with an ERA lower than two at 1.82 in 29.2 IP. MacLean is part of a challenging relief tandem with redshirt sophomore Josh Novak, who holds opposing batters to a team-low .176 batting average against, while also having a squad-low 1.11 WHIP. Novak and MacLean have also nabbed five of Hillsdale's seven saves on the season.

In strikeouts, sophomore Brenden Smith has racked up a team-high 38, which is four more than fellow starter Logan McLaughlin with 34. The trio of Smith, redshirt junior McLaughlin, and junior Jacob Pallo have combined to start 25 of the Chargers' 35 games this campaign.

UP NEXT
Following the short trip to Hillsdale, the Warriors will head to Illinois for their first-ever games at Roosevelt and Ozinga Field in Crestwood, Ill. Those contests are scheduled between Friday, April 17, and Sunday, April 19. Friday's first pitch is scheduled for 4 p.m. Eastern time.

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Players Mentioned

#3 Macio Miller: RHP; 6' 3"; Graduate Student; R/R

#21 Gavin Nash: RHP; 6' 1"; Redshirt Sophomore; R/R

#17 Gabe Nazelli: RHP; 6' 3"; Graduate Student; L/R

#2 Owen Tuccinardi: DH; 6' 0"; Junior; R/R

#35 Will Lowery: RHP; 6' 0"; Redshirt Junior; R/R

#27 Keegan Pulford-Thorpe: LHP; 6' 2"; Graduate Student; R/L

Players Mentioned

#3 Macio Miller
: 6' 3"; Graduate Student; R/R
: RHP

#21 Gavin Nash
: 6' 1"; Redshirt Sophomore; R/R
: RHP

#17 Gabe Nazelli
: 6' 3"; Graduate Student; L/R
: RHP

#2 Owen Tuccinardi
: 6' 0"; Junior; R/R
: DH

#35 Will Lowery
: 6' 0"; Redshirt Junior; R/R
: RHP

#27 Keegan Pulford-Thorpe
: 6' 2"; Graduate Student; R/L
: LHP