The University of Mary Washington baseball team split its Friday doubleheader with York College in Capital Athletic Conference play, falling in the opener, 12-6, before winning game two with a sacrifice fly in the ninth, 9-8. The Eagle win snapped the Spartans' 11-game win streak, and gave York their first conference loss.
The second game was a back and forth affair, with both teams scoring runs almost every inning. The Eagles jumped ahead with three runs in the first, but York scored two in the second. The Eagles plated one in the second to take a 4-2 lead, but the Spartans answered with three in the third to take a 5-4 lead. UMW scored once in the third to tie the score at five through three.
The Spartans outscored the Eagles, 2-1 in the fourth inning, but UMW outscored the guests, 2-1, in the fifth, and the score stood tied at 8-8. Then, for three and a half innings, neither team could push across a run. York loaded the bases with no outs in the sixth, but Seth Taylor came on in relief, and struck out the first batter he faced, and then induced an inning-ending double play.
Finally in the bottom of the ninth, Kevin Stein singled, advanced to second on a wild pitch, and moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Brian Burns. After intentional walks to Thomas Weaver and Jono Haught, James Keller, who had five hits in the game, drove home Stein with a sacrifice fly to right field.
Keller had five hits and five RBI to lead the way at the plate, while Burns had four hits and three runs scored. Weaver had three hits, and Haught and Stein each had two for the Eagles. Taylor picked up the win by throwing four innings of three-hit relief, allowing no runs while striking out two.
The eagles dropped the opener, 12-6, as the Spartans broke open a 3-0 game with four runs in the fifth and four in the sixth. The Eagles plated a pair of runs in the sixth and three in the seventh, but York used a 21-hit attack to claim a 12-6 victory.
In that game, Stein led the Eagles with a double and two singles, while Haught singled and doubled, and Derek Nease singled twice. Freshman Erik Jorgensen took the loss, allowing five earned runs on 12 hits in five innings.
The Eagles will visit St. Mary's College on Saturday for a noon doubleheader in another CAC twinbill.