CARY, N.C. — In Game 1 of the Division II Baseball Championship, East Stroudsburg University fell 15–11 to No. 3 seed Lenoir-Rhyne on Friday at the USA Baseball National Training Complex.
The Warriors (40–15) dropped their first game since May 7, falling to the power-hitting Bears (49–14). ESU will return to action on Sunday, June 1, at 1:30 p.m. against the loser of Friday night's game between No. 2 Central Missouri and No. 7 Northwood, which is scheduled for 8 p.m.
Notables
Chaise Albus had a standout day at the plate, going 3-for-3 with a solo home run, two walks, two RBIs and a stolen base.
Walker Zampella drove in three runs, including two on a single to left field.
Dennis Pierce hit a two-run homer down the left-field line that stayed fair.
Jackson Rutecki entered in the seventh inning and delivered two RBIs on two hits.
Jack Rothenhausler also recorded multiple hits, including a double and an RBI infield single in the eighth inning.
How it happened
ESU got off to a strong start, with Albus launching a solo home run in the first inning. Pierce followed with a two-run shot in the third to make it 3–0.
However, Lenoir-Rhyne responded with a big push, scoring 13 unanswered runs to take a 13–3 lead after five innings. The teams traded runs in the sixth and seventh innings, bringing the score to 15–4.
Despite the big deficit the Warriors did not quit as they mounted a late rally in the eighth, plating seven runs from Zampella, Rutecki, Pierce, Albus and Rothenhausler to cut the deficit to 15–11, down to just four runs. Though that would be the final score, as neither team scored any more runs.
Up next
ESU will face the loser of Central Missouri vs. Northwood on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. in an elimination game. Live stats and the livestream feed for Sunday's game can be found
here.
