Frostburg State University Athletics

CHARLESTON, W. Va. – The Frostburg State Baseball team fell 9-2 against Charleston (WV) in the play-in game to the Championship of the MEC Tournament on Sunday afternoon.
 
The Bobcats sent out junior John Smith to start the rematch of the first tournament game against the Golden Eagles, as after getting the first two batters out via a flyball and a grounder on just three pitches, Smith surrendered a homer to give them an early 1-0 advantage. In the bottom of the first, FSU went down 1-2-3 before Smith mirrored that in the second. Frostburg had their first baserunner in freshman Drew Jourdan after he got hit by a pitch, then advanced to second on a balk, however the Golden Eagles got the last batter via a swinging strikeout to preserve their lead. 
 
Both teams generated base runners in the third as the Bobcats had their best scoring opportunity after junior Johnny Antonelli worked a four-pitch walk before finding his way to third on a sac bunt from redshirt sophomore CJ Carmichael. Freshman Tanner Cunningham then lined a single to center and Antonelli rounded third looking to tie the game but a well-worked relay from UC got him out at home. Sophomore Manny Hall kept the frame moving with a double to the wall in left to put both runners in scoring position, but a bounced grounder to the catcher provided the last out.
 
After Smith worked swiftly through the Golden Eagle batters in the top of the fourth, Jourdan continued his success, grounding a two-out single to right, but once again was stranded on the basepaths. In the top of the fifth, Smith was replaced on the mound, as a double and a bunt single before a hit to right scored Charleston's second run. The scoring didn't end there, as FSU looked to set up a force play with an intentional walk to load the bases, however a double was followed by a sac fly that put the Golden Eagles up 5-0.
 
With momentum on their side, Charleston put up a zero in the bottom of the frame to put them right back on offense and scoring two more runs after a trio of singles and an error before a 30-minute delay was called for lightning. When players were finally able to take the field again, freshman Bryce Bauer only needed one pitch to get out of the inning, working a 1-6-3 double play. Junior Jackson Schalick found his way on in the bottom of the inning after getting plunked before he advanced to second but UC was once again able to neutralize the threat with a backward K. The seventh inning went by scoreless for both sides despite Jourdan and Carmichael finding their way on base. 
 
After Bauer went 1-2-3 in the eighth, FSU finally broke through the score column as Hall led off with a four-pitch walk before Schalick replaced him on first after a fielder's choice. A batter later, junior Ryan Bouma stepped up to bat and sent a double into the left-center gap to score Schalick before Bouma scored himself on a wild pitch to lower Frostburg's deficit to 7-2. 
 
Just as the Bobcats generated some momentum on their side, the Golden Eagles shut it down as another trip came out of the bullpen, with three straight baserunners that scored a run before a double scored Charleston's ninth run. In FSU's final at-bats, Carmichael worked a one-out walk before Cunningham and Hall both put on good swings that weren't able to find the ground, as the Golden Eagles secured the 9-2 victory.
 
Cunningham, Hall, Bouma, and Jourdan all recorded one hit, with Bouma tallying an RBI, while Jourdan walked twice, reaching base every time he came up to bat.
 
 With the loss, the Bobcats end their season 36-17 while Charleston improves to 24-29 and secured the MEC Championship over Glenville State.