ATHENS, W.Va. – The Frostburg State Baseball team dropped their opening MEC series to Concord with final scores of 9-5 and 9-7 on Saturday afternoon.
Frostburg was gifted two runners to open the game, after back-to-back batters being hit by pitches. Junior Ethan Kiple and senior Trevor Jones knocked back-to-backs singles to drive in the two runners and give the Bobcats an early 2-0 lead. Junior Aiden Duda got in on the offensive momentum, putting the ball in play and allowing the third FSU run to cross the plate. Concord responded right away in their first at-bats of the game, putting up eight runs for an 8-3 lead after the first inning.
The Bobcats kept their momentum going in their next at-bats as sophomore Christian Shertzer hit a two-out single to left field and scored on a two-run homer from sophomore Danny Estrada. Senior AJ Campbell kept the Mountain Lions tamed, capturing four strikeouts and keeping the score at 8-5 until the sixth inning.
Concord added one more run to their lead in the bottom of the sixth, leaving Frostburg with one more at-bat. FSU was able to get two runners on in the top of the seventh, but couldn't get any runs across the plate, dropping the first game 9-5.
Both teams started off scoreless in the second game, until the Bobcats struck in the second inning as sophomore Cy Probst hit a leadoff single up the middle. Sophomore Randy Steen then hit a double to advance Probst to second, and Probst would score on an RBI single from Shertzer for an 1-0 Bobcat lead. Junior Will Grove started off strong on the mound, leaving Concord scoreless until the third inning.
The Mountain Lions got their bats going in the bottom of the third, scoring five runs to jump out to a 5-1 lead. FSU responded right away in the top of the fourth, as Estrada drew a walk and would be sent around the bases on a two-run bomb from junior Ethan Kiple. Concord got one run back in the bottom of the fifth, before Shertzer hit a leadoff single to open the sixth, and scored on an RBI double from sophomore Mikey Guy to bring the score to 6-4.
Concord capped off the sixth inning adding three more runs to their lead. In their last chance at-bats, Frostburg showed they weren't done yet, as senior Andrew Smith opened the seventh inning with a double to right field, was sent to third on a single from Probst, and scored on an RBI double from junior Nick Trey, who came in to pinch hit. Campbell also came in to pinch hit, grounding out to third, and allowing another run to score. Shertzer then grounded out to shortstop, allowing Trey to score as well. With two outs, the Bobcats rally came up short as they fell by a final score of 9-7.
Shertzer finished with four hits, two RBI, and two runs on the day, leading the way for FSU on offense. Kiple added three hits, three RBI and two runs, as Estrada tallied two hits, two RBI, and three runs. Five other Bobcats recorded a hit on the day. Despite the losses, Frostburg's pitching combined for 12 strikeouts in the doubleheader.
With the two losses, FSU falls to 7-8 on the season, while Concord moves to 6-11. The Bobcats will stay on the road to face other MEC opponent Glenville State Monday, March 20 for a doubleheader with the first game set to start at 1PM. For more information and updates, please visit frostburgsports.com.
