PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. - Jake Sommers struck out eight batters in 5.0 innings and Tyler Bordner drove in four runs to lead the Milwaukee baseball team to an 8-3 victory over Canisius Saturday morning at the Snowbird Baseball Classic.
 
The Panthers (1-1) broke a 2-2 deadlock against the Golden Griffins (0-2) in the fifth inning on Bordner's bases-clearing double and kept adding on from there, claiming their first win of the 2018 season.
 
Bordner finished with a pair of hits and also scored a run. Ben Chally went 3-for-5 with two runs scored and two RBI, while Mike Ferri (2-for-4, 2 runs) and Oakland Scanlon (2-for-5) also added multi-hit efforts.
 
"We came out swinging the bat early today," head coach Scott Doffek said. "I liked our at bats up and down the lineup. All in all, a good team win."
 
Sommers (1-0) allowed three runs on seven hits, walking three to go along with the eight punchouts.
 
The bullpen was near-perfect. Clayton Uselman struck out a pair in his 1.1 innings of work and George Swedie recorded the first save of his career with 2.2 strong innings of relief. He did walk three, but gave up just one hit in his scoreless season debut.
 
"Sommers did a nice of making some big pitches in some tough spots and the ended up being the difference," Doffek said. "Uselman did a nice job in the sixth when that game was in the balance – it's great to have him back. In addition, it was also good to see George extended a little and watch him pitch with a lead."
 
Milwaukee jumped out quickly, getting RBI-singles from Chally and Bordner in the first. Canisius would add single tallies in the second and third to knot the score at 2-2.
 
It stood that way until the fifth. Trevor Schwecke, Chally and Colin Kreiter all singled with one down to start things up. Bordner took care of the rest, driving a double to the wall to clear the bases and make it 5-2. The Griffs would get one back in the bottom of the frame but that would be it.
 
Chally added an RBI single in the sixth; UWM would score on an error in the seventh and would close out the scoring on a wild pitch in the eighth.
 
The Panthers close out their weekend in Florida with a doubleheader Sunday. Up first is a rematch with Canisius at 9 a.m. CST, followed by a rematch with Ohio State at 12 p.m. CST.