CHARLESTON, W. Va. – The Frostburg State Baseball team split their MEC doubleheader against Charleston, taking the first game on a walk-off win 9-8 and dropping the second game with another close score of 9-7.
Both teams stayed quiet in the first inning of the of the first game, before Charleston put the first three runs on the board in the top of the second. Frostburg got one run back in the bottom of the second, scoring their first run of the game off a homerun from junior Ethan Kiple, to bring the game to 3-1.
The Golden Eagles added one more run to their lead in the top fourth, before FSU would get back within two as junior Aidan Duda ripped a single, stole second, and scored on an RBI single from sophomore Christian Shertzer. The Bobcats kept that offensive momentum going in their next at-bats, as sophomore Randy Steen hit a lead off single to open the fifth, and scored on a two-run bomb from sophomore Danny Estrada that would tie things up at four.
Charleston answered right back in the sixth, putting up four runs of their own to take a 8-4 lead. FSU got one run back in the bottom of the inning, as sophomore Mikey Guy hit an RBI single to left field to score junior Nick Trey, who drew a walk.
Senior Jacob McNellis got three easy outs on the mound to keep the score 8-5 going into Frostburg's last at-bats in the bottom of the seventh. In crunch time, FSU opened the seventh with a trio of singles from Duda, Shertzer, and sophomore Cy Probst, resulting in one run to cross the plate to bring the game to 8-6. The Bobcats got another run off of a passed ball by the catcher, before Steen hit a single once again, to tie the game at eight. With one out, Guy recorded his second hit of the day, a walk-off RBI single to score the game winning run and give FSU the 9-8 victory.
In game two, the Bobcats got their offense going in the bottom of the first with a single from Estrada and an RBI single from senior Trevor Jones, to give Frostburg an early 1-0 lead. Duda tacked on another single in the bottom of the first to help put the Bobcats up 2-0 after one.
Charleston responded right away in the top of the second, putting three runs of their own across the plate to take a 3-2 lead. FSU couldn't get anything going in their half of the inning, as the Golden Eagles added two more runs in the top of the third, to extend their lead to 5-2.
Frostburg finally responded in the bottom of the third with a leadoff single from Kiple, two drawn walks, and a two-RBI single from Steen that would bring the Bobcats back within one. Charleston kept their offensive momentum going, getting that run back in the top of the fourth to make the score 6-4.
Both teams only saw three batters in the fifth, before the Golden Eagles went on to add three more runs to their lead in the top of the sixth. In their next at-bats, junior Stafford Allison reached base on an error as Estrada would then reach on a walk. Both Guy and Jones hit back-to-back doubles to bring the score to 9-7 with one inning left to play.
Charleston left one on in the top of the seventh, leaving the score at 9-7 with one more chance for the Bobcats. Frostburg was unable to keep their offensive momentum from the sixth inning, dropping the game with a final score of 9-7.
Steen led the way for FSU on offense, going 4-for-6 on the day with three RBI and one run. Shertzer was right behind him, finishing 3-for-6 with two RBI and one run. Guy and Duda also each recorded three hits, with Guy adding three RBI and two runs, and Duda adding one RBI and two runs. Nine pitchers saw action for the Bobcats, combining for a total of 19 strikeouts.
With the split, Frostburg moves to 10-10 on the season, while Charleston improves to 17-5. The Bobcats will have a quick turnaround, staying on the road to face West Virginia State Sunday, March 26 with the first game of the MEC doubleheader to begin at 1 PM. For more information and updates, please visit frostburgsports.com.
