NEWARK, N.J. - Eastern Baseball split a pair of contests with Muhlenberg in its final tuneup before heading to Myrtle Beach for Spring Break. Eastern used a seven-run seventh inning to win game one, 10-6, before falling in the nightcap, 5-4, on a walkoff.
The Eagles (2-3) finished with 15 hits in the opener.
Luke Meehan had a strong day at the plate with four hits in five at-bats to go along with two RBIs.
Leyton Bamesberger and
Trent MacDougall each finished with a pair of doubles, and
Robert Del Buono also drove in a pair of runs with a two-run
After a scoreless first two frames, the Eagles struck first in the top of the third inning. MacDougall led off the frame with a double to left field, and Meehan followed with an RBI single to give the Eagles a 1-0 lead.
The Mules (3-2) grabbed a 3-1 lead on a three-run home run in the home half of the third, but the Eagles answered right back with a four-run fourth inning. Bamesberger led off the frame with a double, and
Joe Paradise scored him on an RBI single to left field. With two outs, the Eagles tacked on three more runs. Meehan drove in his second run on another single through the left, and MacDougall scored on a wild pitch to give the Eagles a 4-3 lead.
Matthew Gonglik added to the Eastern advantage with an RBI single through the left side to score Meehan.
The Mules tacked on three runs in the fourth and fifth innings to go back up 6-5 and held that advantage until the bottom of the sixth. In the top of the seventh, the Eastern offense came back alive. The Eagles scored five runs on five hits and one Muhlenberg error.
Brian Lang tied the game with a home run to left field with one out, and two batters later, after another Bamesberger double,
Justin DiCesare gave the Eagles the lead back for good with a pinch hit RBI single. Del Buono's two-run shot later in the frame increased the Eastern advantage to three, and MacDougall's second double scored
Thomas Kozlusky to put the Eagles ahead 10-6.
Dylan Labukas closed out the seventh, recording a strikeout and inducing a pair of flyouts.
Gavin Mikulski (1-0) earned the win in relief with two scoreless frames and three strikeouts.
Muhlenberg grabbed a 2-0 lead in the first inning of game two on a solo home run and scoring a wild pitch. Eastern scored its first run in the top of the third on an RBI double from Gonglik.
The Mules went back up by two on a RBI double in the fourth, but the Eagles cut the lead back to one on another RBI double by MacDougall. The Mules held that lead until the eighth inning.
Bamesberger, who has been collecting extra base hits throughout the early part of the season, tied the game in the top of the eighth, crushing a solo shot over the right-center field wall. Of his seven hits so far, six have gone for extra bases.
After Muhlenberg went back up 4-3, Lang's second home run of the day, this one a pinch hit solo shot, tied the game at 4-4. However, the Mules went on to win the game on a walkoff RBI double in the bottom of the ninth.
Meehan, Gonglik, and Bamesberger each finished with a pair of hits. Eastern's pitching staff of
Peter Mellana,
Owen DeLong, and
Brayden Goss combined for nine strikeouts.
"On the day, our relievers did well," Eastern Head Coach
Scott Renauro said. "Owen had all of his stuff working in game two to keep them off balanced at the plate. Hitting-wise, we executed in game one but lost our approach in game two. However, Leyton continued to drive the baseball and use all parts of the field. Brian had a big day with two home runs. He has the experience in big moments and has come up big for us. As we head to Spring Break, we look to put all parts of the game together."
Eastern will begin its Spring Break trip against Houghton University on Tuesday. First pitch is set for 11:00 am.
