From IUP Sports Information
HICKORY, N.C. – IUP baseball outhit Lenoir-Rhyne 23-to-19 but the Crimson Hawks stranded 21 base runners as they dropped both ends of a doubleheader Friday afternoon at Bears Field. Lenoir-Rhyne won by scores of 5-2 and 12-4.
The Crimson Hawks totaled 10 base hits in the opener but couldn’t get a run across until the sixth inning. Lenoir-Rhyne (4-5) took a 4-0 lead into the top of the sixth where Chris Eisel and Nick Hess put together back-to-back singles. Ben Teplin followed with a third straight single as Eisel scored on a throwing error by the Bears’ third baseman for IUP’s first run of the season.
Hess and Teplin were both left stranded as Lenoir-Rhyne picked up the final two outs of the inning.
The Bears added an insurance run in the bottom half to go on top 5-1, but IUP looked to rally in the seventh as leadoff batter Aaron Thornberry ripped a single to lead off the inning. After two straight strikeouts, Markus Cestra drew a walk before Eisel knocked an RBI single to left to bring Thornberry around. That would be it as a liner ended the threat.
The Bears took an early 4-0 lead in game two, but IUP chipped away adding a run on a Cestra single in the second and two more on RBIs from Teplin and Austin Mueller in the third.
Lenoir-Rhyne added to its lead with two runs in the fourth, one in the seventh and five in the eighth for the runaway win. Four of the five eighth inning runs came after a dropped pop fly with one out. In all, 12 of IUP’s 17 runs allowed on the day were earned.
Who stood out
DiAndreth and Hess each went 4-for-9 in the doubleheader, while Cestra finished 3-for-7. Thornberry, Eisel, Teplin, Caden DeCroo and Colin Williams each had two hits, with Williams’ legging out a triple – IUP’s only extra base hit.
Up next
The Crimson Hawks wrap up their season-opening weekend tomorrow with another doubleheader with Lenoir-Rhyne. First pitch is set for noon with game one scheduled for seven innings while game two is nine.
