The Griffin baseball team returned to PSAC West play with a doubleheader at Indiana (PA) on Friday afternoon as they opened the four game set with the Crimson Hawks. IUP rallied three times in game one for a 9-8 come from behind victory. SHU split the doubleheader with a 6-3 win in game two. SHU is now 25-14 overall and 10-8 in PSAC West play.
The first three Griffins singled to open game one with
Tyler Sullivan scoring on
Mark Colella's hit to give SHU a 1-0 lead.
Craig Lewis scored on a double play ball to give SHU an early 2-0 lead. SHU added two more runs in the second inning when
Austin Braendel and
MP Buckley had back to back doubles. Sullivan later drove in Buckley for a 4-0 lead.
IUP scored one in the second and four in the third to take a 5-4 lead. SHU took advantage of two IUP errors to retake the lead in the fourth.
Adam Ferita had the key hit as he knocked in two to give SHU the 7-5 lead. That lead did not last long as the Crimson Hawks tied the score at seven with two runs in the bottom of the fourth. Colella hit a two out solo homer in the sixth to put the Griffins back in front 8-7. IUP did not wait long to retake the lead as they scored twice in the sixth for a 9-8 lead.
SHU loaded the bases in the seventh after an out but a strikeout and flyout stranded the tying and go ahead runs on the bases.
Colella and Braendel each had 3 hits. Sullivan and Lewis each finished with two hits.
Sullivan put the Griffins on the board first in game two all by himself. He singled to lead off the game, stole second, moved to third on a balk and scored on a wild pitch. IUP tied the game at one in the bottom of the second inning. The Crimson Hawks took a 2-1 lead in the third inning.
Tom McCarthy was hit by a pitch and scored on a
Sam Vilk single to tie the score at two in the fourth.
McCarthy gave SHU the lead for good with an RBI single in the fifth. The Griffins added three more runs in the sixth, two of them coming off the bat of Lewis. The other scored on an error.
Zack Martinelli earned the complete game win. He gave up 3 runs on 7 hits while striking out two. Vilk and Buckley each had two hits.
SHU will conclude the four game set with IUP on Saturday with a home doubleheader starting at 1 PM.