March 17, 2015 Box Score
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. -- When the chips were down, the Hawks baseball team responded well in Monday morning's series finale versus Coppin State.
Down in the 8th inning UMES rallied to tie and force extra innings. They would rally again in the 10th before finally winning in the 11th on a game winning single by senior Joshua James (Milford, Del.). The victory improves their record to 5-10 overall and 3-0 in conference play, the first time that's happened since 2009.
Early on in the contest, both teams locked in to a stalemate as the pitchers ruled from the mound. Senior Jordan Bone (Pittston, Pa.) had a strong outing, firing six scoreless frames while giving up just two hits. The Coppin duo of Dillon O'Brien and Jhar Devilme were equally impressive, spreading just three Hawk hits over the same span.
It would be the Eagles who would break the deadlock first. Their leadoff batter was hit by a pitch, and the next man up singled. One man was driven in on a Lance Montano base hit, and Colin Dower singled home a second run.
Lightning would strike for UMES in the bottom of the 8th. Junior Mike Escanilla (Waldorf, Md.) drew a walk to start the frame and sophomore Justin Dattilo (Pittsburgh, Pa.) reached on an error, putting two men in scoring position. The rattled Coppin State pitcher then threw two balls wild that allowed both runners to cross home and tie the score.
UMES would strand a runner in the ninth, adding on to the inning total. Coppin would touch home in the top of the 10th on a sacrifice fly by George Dragon, but the Hawks answered back after James singled in the bottom half of the inning. He would score on an RBI single from senior Greg Turlik (Gaithersburg, Md.).
Fellow senior Chipper Smith (Florence, S.C.) pitched a near-spotless 11th to set up the final inning. Sophomore Jordan Martin (Atlanta, Ga.) would reach on a base hit and then take second on a stolen base. Escanilla would fly out deep into center field, allowing Martin to tag up to third. That would set up the game winning at-bat. James battled back from a 0-2 count to draw even before blasting a single in front of the center fielder to secure a Hawks sweep.
The Hawks will keep busy during spring break with three more games during the week. They will face Conference USA opponent UNC Charlotte on Tuesday night before traveling to Durham for a doubleheader with the Eagles of N.C. Central.
