Concord Splits MEC Home Opener with Notre Dame

ATHENS, W.Va. – The Concord University baseball team went 1-1 in a doubleheader against Mountain East Conference opponent Notre Dame Saturday afternoon at Anderson Field.
 
CU moves to 9-9 overall and 2-4 in MEC play, while Notre Dame is now 5-14 overall and 3-3 in MEC action.
 
Game 1: Concord 6 – Notre Dame 1
The opening three innings of the game were scoreless, but CU's fourth-inning charge proved to be the difference.
 
Senior infielder Zack Saryeldin broke the scoring silence with a solo home run to lead off the bottom of the fourth. After a hit by pitch and a walk, Concord put two runners on with one out. Senior first baseman Chris Satcher and freshman catcher Marshall Basham hit back-to-back singles, plating two more CU runs to gain a 3-0 advantage.
 
Junior utility MJ Hunter singled to start the fifth inning, followed by another home run from Saryeldin, his team-leading fourth of the season, giving the Mountain Lions a 5-0 edge.
 
NDC plated a run in the top of the sixth, but CU added another insurance run in the bottom half as Saryeldin picked up his third hit and fourth RBI, driving in Hunter to push the score to 6-1.
 
A 1-2-3 seventh inning sealed the victory for the Mountain Lions.
 
Graduate pitcher Nick Sanso pitched a clean first inning, striking out two Falcons. Graduate pitcher Andrew Neff (3-2) earned the win, pitching the remaining six innings, giving up three hits and one earned run. Neff retired six hitters in a row and nine of the first NDC batters he faced to start his afternoon.
 
Eight of nine CU hitters in the starting lineup recorded a hit in the game, including Saryeldin's three hits and four runs batted in.
 
Game 2: Notre Dame 10 – Concord 3
NDC scored runs in four consecutive innings to notch a game two victory.
 
The Falcons plated one run in the second inning and two runs in the third to gain a 3-0 edge over the Mountain Lions.
 
Notre Dame scored three more runs in the fourth, extending its lead to 6-0.
 
Saryeldin singled to start the home half of the fourth inning, followed by a two-out walk by sophomore utility Dawson Gragg. With two runners on and two outs, Satcher hit is first career triple into right field, plating both Saryeldin and Gragg to cut into the deficit, 6-2.
 
Notre Dame scored another run in the fifth inning, marking the fourth consecutive inning with at least one run for the Falcons to lead 7-2.  
 
Junior outfielder Demetri Jamison and graduate infielder Daniel Layne walked to start the sixth inning. Then, Gragg singled to right field to load the bases with one out. Satcher hit a deep fly ball to center field, scoring Jamison and making the score 7-3.
 
However, the four-run deficit was as close as CU would get in the late stages of the game.
 
Three more Falcons runs in the top of the seventh closed out a 10-3 victory for Notre Dame and earning the doubleheader split.
 
Satcher drove in all three CU runs in the game. As a team, Concord only struck out two times at the plate and drew four walks. On the mound, graduate pitcher Eddie Blake (2-2) took the loss, allowing six earned runs in 2.1 innings pitched.
 
The Mountain Lions host Salem for a non-conference doubleheader Sunday at Anderson Field starting at 1:00 p.m.