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Box Score 2
ST. DAVIDS, Pa.—Eastern University Baseball worked a split with the FDU-Florham Devils in Sunday's doubleheader, falling 7-3 in game one, but taking game two 5-4.
In the fifth inning of game two, the Eagles took advantage of a booted play in the infield to score four unearned runs in the extended inning and take the lead.
Eric Rossi led the Eagles with a 4-for-6 day at the plate with two doubles.
FDU-Florham pitcher Joe Hofmann breezed through the Eagles' lineup the first time around, pitching a perfect game through the first three innings. FDU meanwhile built a 4-0 lead in the second inning, scoring two of those runs on a triple by Frankie Tassielli.
Eastern finally got to Hofmann in the bottom of the fourth. Leadoff hitter Angelo Kelly legged out a single on a grounder hit toward second. Kelly was bunted over to second by Ryan McMenamin and then reached third on a single by Timmy Gorton. Eric Rossi clobbered a double to the fence in left center on the first pitch of his at-bat, scoring Kelly and Gorton.
The Devils singed the Eagles with three runs in the top of the fifth to make it a 7-2 ball game.
Rossi knocked his second double of the game out to left center to lead off the seventh after working a full count. Rossi was brought home by an RBI-double by freshman Mike McCracken, but that was all the Eagles mustered in the inning.
Eastern out-hit the Devils 10-8 in game two. Gorton, Rossi and Andrew Boykin each had two hits in the game. Boykin led the Eagles with two RBIs.
Chris Marinaccio took a no-decision after going 4.2 innings on the mound. He allowed three runs while walking one and striking out one. Marinaccio got through the first two innings without allowing a run, but was tagged for two runs on four hits in the third inning. FDU-Florham tacked on a run in the fourth to claim a 3-1 lead.
The Eagles, who had scored the one run on a Kelly single in the second, took the lead on four runs in the fifth. After the first two batters were retired, Gorton kept the inning going with a single down the line in left. The inning continued when Grato's ground ball to second was fumbled. Rossi loaded the bases with a single, and Andrew Check then walked to force in the first run of the inning. Still with two outs, the Devils lifted the starting pitcher. Eastern's Boykin liked the first pitch he saw from the reliever and drove it to right field to score Rossi and Grato. Cal Sanelli batted in Check with a single up the middle to give Eastern a 5-3 advantage.
Eastern reliever Nick Centeno ran into trouble in the top of the sixth, allowing the first two batters to reach with a free pass. The Devils later scored on a fielder's choice to pull within one run. Centeno squelched the comeback by inducing a flyout to right for the third out.
Centeno finished off the Devils in the top of the seventh. He walked one batter but got the other three to fly out harmlessly.
With the split, Eastern sits at 7-11 in the Freedom Conference. The Eagles are chasing Wilkes (10-7) and FDU-Florham (7-9) for the fourth and final playoff spot but the Eagles do hold the head-to-head tie-breaker over them both. To claim that fourth seed in the playoffs, Eastern will also have to do its part of sweeping Delaware Valley University in the final conference series while also hoping that neither Wilkes nor FDU-Florham reaches 11 wins on the season.
