Baseball Winning Streak Comes to a Close After Back-and-Forth Battle with Vulcans

WASHINGTON, Pa. – The Frostburg State Baseball team lost a back-and-forth contest on the road against California (Pa.) Tuesday afternoon, falling by an 11-10 final.
 
FSU began the game with an early threat, as freshman Jackson Shalick and junior Danny Estrada knocked back-to-back singles leading off the first, but a strikeout and two fly-outs left them stranded. Getting the start on the bump, sophomore Joe Pippin was efficient in the bottom half, setting the Vulcans down in order with a pair of strikeouts. Both teams left a runner on base in the second before the Bobcats broke the game open in the top of the third.
 
Shalick led with a walk, then advanced to second on a grounder from Estrada. Senior Ethan Kiple battled his way to a seven-pitch walk, then junior Mikey Guy roped a double into left that scored Shalick and sent Kiple to third. Freshman Ryan Bouma followed up by bringing both runners in on a single up the middle for a 3-0 lead. Keeping the bats hot, juniors Cy Probst and Randy Steen got back-to-back hits, scoring another run and keeping runners on base. Probst scored on an RBI double to left from junior Ben Wieman, then Steen crossed home on a sac fly from freshman Logan Helser to cap off a six-run frame.
 
CALU got themselves on the board in the bottom half, as back-to-back singles, a Frostburg error, and a sac fly plated them a run, as Pippin worked out of further trouble with a fly ball to right. FSU continued to see the ball well in the fourth, as Estrada earned a base on balls, with Kiple ripping a single and each runner moving up on a sac bunt from Guy. Bouma got himself another RBI, bringing Estrada home on a sac fly for a 7-1 advantage.
 
The Vulcans completely flipped the game on its head in the bottom half of the fourth, using their own six-run inning to suddenly tie the score at 7-7. Getting a runner on base took two outs to do, but a streak of four straight singles plated three runs to cut the deficit in half. The next two batters tripled and doubled, respectively, bringing across the tying run before a grounder to third finally ended the rally going into the fifth.
 
Undeterred by the CALU comeback, Frostburg picked right back up, Wieman lined a double down the third-base line, then senior pinch-hitter Stafford Allison followed suit with a shot to the outfield to score Wieman and regain the lead 8-7. Graduate Daniel Morgano further settled the nerves as FSU's third pitcher of the day, tossing a 1-2-3 bottom half to preserve the Bobcat lead.
 
Kiple began the sixth with a double to straightaway center, moving to third on a grounder from Guy and eventually being brought home on another sac fly off the bat of Bouma to add an insurance run at 9-7. After getting the first batter to ground out in the sixth, Morgano allowed an infield single, stolen base, and a walk to bring the go-ahead run to the plate, but senior Nate Vermillion was able to shut the door with a fly-out, keeping the 9-7 lead intact.
 
The Vulcans led their offensive half off with a single down the right field line, with the runner moving up on a wild pitch and coming around to score on a single up the middle, bringing the hosts to within one at 9-8. FSU just about kept their distance in the top of the eighth, as Shalick sent a double blasting into right center, moving up on a passed ball, and scoring on an RBI knock from Estrada for a 10-8 advantage.
 
With the game still in the balance, CALU stunned Frostburg in the bottom of the eighth, loading the bases as each of the first three batters reached on a single to start the frame. The Bobcats traded an out for a run on a fielder's choice, as the Vulcans pulled within a run on the play. A walk loaded the bags once more, then a sac fly plated the tying run before an RBI single put CALU in the lead for the first time in the game at 11-10. A fly-out to center ended the inning, but FSU was sat down in order during their final at-bats, putting an end to the wild contest.
 
Five players recorded multiple hits for the Bobcats, as Bouma was the driving force offensively with four RBI. Morgano was the lone pitcher to not allow a run out of the pen, tossing 1.2 innings with just one hit and one walk allowed.
 
With the loss, Frostburg drops to 21-8, while the Vulcans improve to 20-8. FSU stays on the road for a four-game set against Wheeling that will begin Saturday, April 13 at 1 p.m. Information and updates will be posted to frostburgsports.com.