Baseball: Hawks capture NCAA opener

Ryan Porter’s three-run home run capped an eight-run second inning to power Rockhurst to a 9-4 victory over ninth-ranked Grand Valley State on the first day of the NCAA Midwest Regional at Oestrike Stadium in Ypsilanti, Mich.

The fifth-seeded Hawks, 33-17, will meet fourth-seeded Northern Kentucky at 5 p.m. Friday in the double-elimination regional.

Junior shortstop Anthony Davis led the eight-hit Rockhurst attack with a two-run triple in the second and a double in the sixth. Derrick Jones and Patrick Chandler added RBI singles in the second. Caleb Baker drove in the Hawks’ final run with a pinch-hit single in the seventh.

Mark Sappington (10-3) went the distance for his fifth complete game of the season. He allowed nine hits and struck out five while throwing 146 pitches.