GAME 1

SUMMARY

SALISBURY, MD - The Fairleigh Dickinson Knights scored the final five runs en route to a victory, 10-3, over the Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks in game one of the doubleheader at Henry S. Parker Athletic Complex.

THE SCORE

FDU Knights - 10

Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks - 3

(Knights lead the series 1-0)

HOW IT HAPPENED

On a hot, sunny day in Salisbury, Maryland, the visiting Knights scored three runs in the second to take an early lead, 3-0. After a pair of strong innings for starting pitcher Cade Williams and the Hawk defense, Maryland Eastern Shore answered in the bottom of the fourth inning in a big way. With Diego Aponte on the base paths, Christian Azcona smoked a baseball over the right center field wall for a two-run home run, narrowing the deficit to just a single run.

Unfortunately for the Maroon and Grey, FDU usurped momentum of the game in the top of the fifth inning, outscoring the Hawks by six runs throughout the rest of the contest. Aside from an RBI double from Bronson Taylor that drove in Joshua Caldwell, the Knights completely shut down any scoring opportunities for the Hawks. In addition, FDU stacked multiple long at bats that not only drove up the pitch count but also resulted in productive plate appearances. Aided by their approach at the plate and a trio of errors in the field by the Hawks, The Knights cruised to a seven-run victory.

THE NUMBERS

The Hawks finished with three runs on six hits and three errors while the Knights recorded 10 runs on 13 hits and one error.

Elijah Negron finished 2-for-4 at the plate, tallying his first multi-hit game in his young college career.

Christian Azcona finished 1-for-3 at the plate with two RBI and a home run. Azcona's home run in the fourth inning was his first homer of the season.

Tha'Mon McGriff recorded three relief innings without yielding a single earned run and recorded assists on two double plays.

GAME 2

SUMMARY

After four lead changes in the game, a go-ahead two-RBI single from Jason Brown in the sixth inning helped the Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks rally past the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights, 10-8.

THE SCORE

FDU Knights - 8

Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks - 10

(Series tied 1-1)

HOW IT HAPPENED

After back-to-back one run innings by the Knights in the first and the second frame, the Hawks generated the second lead change of the game in the bottom of the third inning. After Jonathan Rodriguez led off the inning with a single, Ansel Carson scorched his team-leading fifth home run over the left field wall to tie up the ball game, 2-2. Later on in the frame, the Hawks benefited off of a defensive error by FDU. Ryan Davis tapped a pitch down the left field line, and the Knights' pitcher fielded the ball cleanly but airmailed the first baseman, allowing the Hawks to score two runs on the wild sequence. 

With Maryland Eastern Shore up by a pair of runs in the top of the fifth, Fairleigh Dickinson rattled off a trio of runs in the fifth inning for the third lead change of the game. Additionally, the Knights tacked on a solo home run in the sixth to restore their two-run lead, 6-4. 

Despite trailing, the Maroon and Grey put together a string of excellent plate experiences to kick start a scoring bonanza of six runs in three innings.  After Ryan Davis and Joshua Caldwell reached base in the home-half of the sixth inning, Marco Davila tucked an RBI double just inside the left field line to drive in Davis. Later in the frame, Carson drew a walk with the bases loaded to drive in Caldwell to tie up the game 6-6. Then, with runners occupying each base, Jason Brown bounced a clutch two-RBI single through the left side of the infield to drive in Elijah Negron and Davila to give the Hawks the lead for good on the fourth and final lead change of the game, 8-6. 

After back-to-back scoreless innings on the mound by Brandon Gomez, UMES added to the advantage by picking up key insurance runs on both an RBI single by Marco Davila driving in Ryan Howe in the seventh inning and a Diego Aponte RBI single in the eighth inning. Although FDU's comeback effort netted them a pair of runs in the ninth, the stellar team effort both on offense and defense gave Hunter Allen the opportunity to close the game in the ninth, cementing the fourth conference victory of the year for UMES, 10-8.

THE NUMBERS

The Hawks recorded 10 runs on 11 hits and two errors while the Knights amassed eight runs on nine hits and two errors.

Ansel Carson finished 1-for-3 at the plate with a home run. Carson's home run in the third inning marked his team-high fifth home run of the season.

Marco Davila finished 2-for-4 at the plate with two RBI and a double. The freshman third baseman recorded his first multi-hit game and his first collegiate double.

Jason Brown finished 2-for-3 at the plate with two runs and two RBI. Brown's go-ahead two-RBI base hit marked one of his most clutch swings of his collegiate career.

Diego Aponte finished the game 2-for-5 with an RBI. Aponte now has recorded a multi-hit game in five of his last 11 games.

Brandon Gomez earned the win on the mound, striking out two over 3.2 innings of work. 

WHAT WAS SAID:

"Coming off of game one, we really knew we needed this win. For the second game, we really came together as a team and picked each other up along the way." - RHP Brandon Gomez on the mindset for game two of the doubleheader.

"It is awesome to have a really good outing as my last one at home. It is definitely a great feeling and I am really grateful for the opportunity"- RHP Brandon Gomez on his final outing at home.

"The boys worked hard. They showed a lot of resilience and got a lot of things done. I was upset at one point during the game when I reiterated with the team that we needed to continue fighting, and that is exactly what they did to turn it around" -Coach Danny Acosta on how the Hawks turned it around when trailing.

UP NEXT

With the doubleheader split, the Hawks sit at 5-37 (4-22). Maryland Eastern Shore aims to win their second conference series of the season against FDU on Saturday. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Henry S. Parker Athletic Complex.

"Tomorrow we have an opportunity to take the series against a good opponent like FDU," stated Coach Acosta. "If we can do that, we can send a strong message to the conference to let them know that we are here to compete."

FOLLOW ALONG

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