Eastern University Baseball finally got a chance to play on a baseball field. Record snows in Philadelphia have forced the Eastern squad to practice inside and in the cold on the Eastern soccer field. With just one outside practice in Myrtle Beach under their belts, they dropped their season opener 7-3 to Ohio Northern.

The Eagles were able to scratch out a run in the top of the first, but the Polar Bears tallied three times in the second and three times in the bottom of the fourth to pull away to a 6-1 lead. Eastern looked to be on the way to a big inning in the with two runners on in the top of the fifth, but the inning ended on a double play when Mike McNulty took a 3-2 pitch at the outer edge of the strike zone with the runners going.

The Eagles scored single runs in the seventh and in the eighth, and Kyle Kurdewan allowed just one run in an inning and two-thirds in relief, but they were unable to close the gap further. Ramon Reyes reached base four times, and Darren Ziegenfuss picked up a pair of RBI in his first collegiate game.

The Eagles started six new players in the loss. Head Coach Matt Midkiff saw reason for encouragement in the opener. He said, "I thought we got some good swings in for our first time out, and Kyle was strong in relief. Johnny [Taylor]  struggled with command, but I think that will change as we get more time outside."

The Eagles return to action with a pair of games on Tuesday.