Concord Splits With UVa.-Wise

ATHENS, W. Va. – The Concord University baseball team split their doubleheader against UVa.-Wise Wednesday afternoon at Anderson Field.

The Mountain Lions won the first game 5-3 before dropping the second game 8-6.

Game 1: Concord 5 – UVa.-Wise 3
A second inning two-run home run from freshman infielder/pitcher Rylee Nicholas helped propel CU (3-3-1) into the lead and secured it for the remainder of the game.

After surrendering two runs in the top half of the first inning, the Mountain Lions matched the Cavaliers with a pair of runs in the bottom of the frame. A leadoff single by sophomore infielder Zack Saryeldin followed by a double from fifth-year senior infielder Anthony Stehlin placed two runners in scoring position with no outs. Back-to-back sacrifice flies by junior outfielder Richard Ortiz and freshman catcher Joey Duffer allowed the Mountain Lions to tie the game at 2-2.

In the second inning, sophomore first baseman/catcher Chris Satcher singled to bring Nicholas to the plate. On the first pitch of Nicholas' first collegiate at-bat, he powered the ball over the left center field fence to give CU the lead, 4-2.

After UVa.-Wise (4-11) plated a run in the top of the third inning, an RBI sacrifice fly from junior outfielder Josh Adkins brought home sophomore outfielder D.J. Christian to push the CU lead to 5-3.
Offensively, Stehlin batted 2-for-3 with one run scored.

Freshman pitcher Justin Carden (1-0) was credited with the win, notching two strikeouts and giving up no hits in two innings of relief. Stehlin struck out two of the three Cavalier hitters he faced in the seventh to earn his first save of the year.

Game 2: UVa.-Wise 8 – Concord 6
The Mountain Lions found themselves down after giving up four runs in the third inning. CU chipped away at the lead, but the comeback fell short.

Facing a three-run deficit, Saryeldin led the inning off with a double to left field. The next batter, Stehlin, singled to score Saryeldin and narrow the deficit to a 4-2 Cavalier lead.

A UVa.-Wise two-run home run in the top of the fifth inning gave the Cavaliers a 6-2 lead.

The Maroon and Gray answered in the bottom half of the frame. With the bases loaded and no outs, Stehlin punched a ball into center field to score two on the single. Saryeldin came in during the next at-bat to trim the deficit to 6-5.

However, the Cavaliers scored runs in both the top of the sixth and seventh innings to extend their lead to 8-5. CU put together a pair of hits to score a run in the bottom of the seventh, but the deficit was too great to overcome.

At the plate, both Stehlin and Ortiz batted 2-for-4. Stehlin also tallied three RBI. Adkins finished 2-for-3 with two runs scored.

Freshman infielder/pitcher MJ Hunter (0-1) was the losing pitcher in the contest, recording two strikeouts and giving up four earned runs.

CU welcomes Kutztown to Anderson Field for a non-conference doubleheader Saturday at 12:00 p.m.