Dominant Game 1 Win, Close Game 2 Loss Gives Baseball Split with Tigers

NUTTER FORT, W. Va. – The Frostburg State Baseball team split Saturday's doubleheader with Salem, taking game one 11-5 and dropping game two 4-3.

Leadoff hitter, freshman Jackson Schalick, reached first after an error from Salem, then a single by junior Danny Estrada put him on first and moved Schalick to second. A long single by senior Ethan Kiple sent Schalick home, giving FSU a 1-0 leg up. First on the mound for the Bobcats was junior Jacob McDonald, as he left the bottom half of the inning giving up one hit, earning a strikeout and stranding one.

FSU kept things going with a single from junior Randy Steen but was picked off for out one. Senior Adian Duda took one to the arm, putting him on first, then freshman Logan Helser hit one out of the park making it a 3-0 game. Two ground outs by the Bobcat defense and another strikeout for McDonald moved the game into the third.

More hits by Frostburg's offense put Kiple on second as the ball landed in deep right field. Junior Mikey Guy saw his first hit with a single, allowing Kiple to advance to third. Runners now on the corners, a sacrifice fly by Steen brought Kiple through home plate 4-0 and moved Guy into scoring position. Duda, being hit again, put himself on first, but he and Guy would be deserted. McDonald looked at two strikeouts and a runner on first in the bottom half, but facing the fourth batter of the inning, gave up a homerun scoring two to cut the lead in half 4-2.

Frostburg answered back as junior Ben Wieman contacted the ball, launching it over the right field fence for a solo homer 5-2. Schalick and Estrada were both patient at the plate with walks, then proceeded to third and second on a passed ball. Schalick put up the sixth run off a single from Kiple, while Estrada scored after a single by freshman Ryan Bouma. Salem had an unearned run after a walk, single and an error by FSU with the score at 7-3 after four.

The fifth pulled in two more runs for FSU, which started from a single by Helser. A sacrifice at bat by Weiman shifted Helser to second, as a fly out put two outs on the board and Estrada at bat. He sent the ball flying over left field for a two-run home run that saw the score at 9-3. Looking into the bottom of the fifth, after two outs, an intentional walk and two doubles, Salem put up two more runs to pull within 9-5. Junior Cael Huyer was pulled from the bullpen to finish out the frame, fielding a grounder to strand a runner and send the game into the sixth.

FSU's first two batters saw fly outs, then with Steen at bat and Duda on deck, the former walked to first. The latter then hammered the ball out of the park, scoring two more for an 11-5 lead. Huyer caught three batters looking to go into the final inning. Schalick earned another walk along with a single by Estrada getting a pair on, but three straight outs left two more on. Huyer saw three up, three down to end game one 11-5.

With the win, McDonald's overall pitching record moves to 7-1, as he tossed five strikeouts across 4.2 frames, while Huyer had three K's in 2.1 scoreless innings. Estrada and Kiple both had great days at the plate, each finishing with three hits and a pair of RBI, with Helser close behind on a pair of knocks and RBI as well. 

Steen walked to first to start game two, with Kiple on deck. A passed ball by the Tigers allowed Steen to run to second, then the latter hit a bomb to right field getting an early 2-0 edge. Junior Patrick Bauer got the nod on the mound, getting three outs and leaving one on in SU's offensive half. The second inning saw six batters and six outs, with Bauer earning a strikeout before a similar third frame moved the game into the fourth. Bouma took a pitch to the side, followed by Helser earning a hit, but both were left on without a score. A pop-out and double play by FSU's defense kept the game moving with the score still at 2-0.

Kiple saw the only hit for FSU in the fifth, but it went over the fence to give the Bobcats a 3-0 advantage. Salem closed the scoring gap with a single, passed ball advancement and a double to get within 3-1, then to make it a one-run game, the Tigers had another double before graduate Daniel Morgano was sent to the mound in relief, ending things with a stirkeout looking.

Helser singled but three outs would put the Tigers back on offense, as a lead-off double meant Kiple was sent to the hill to close the game. Determined not to get swept on their home turf, a home run for SU gave them a 4-3 lead going into the final inning. Frostburg couldn't muster any offense in their last at-bats, giving Salem the 4-3 victory. 

Kiple and Helser were the only Bobcats to record a hit, each finishing with two, as the former was responsible for all three runs driven in. 

With the conclusion of today's doubleheader, Frostburg's overall record stands at 26-9 while Salem is now 24-14. The sides will face each other in another doubleheader on Sunday, April 21 with a start time of 1pm. For more information visit frostburgsports.com.