The Golden Eagles baseball team hit the road to Miami Hamilton on Saturday for the first two games of a three-game series and dropped both opening day games to the Harriers by scores of 3-2 and 21-0.
In the opener, KSU Tusc fell 3-2 despite leading 2-1 going into the home half of the seventh inning. They broke a 1-1 deadlock in the top of the fifth inning and retired MUH in order in the bottom of the frame and only faced four Harrier batters in the sixth before falling.
Hamilton scored a single run in the bottom of the first inning, but the Eagles bounced back with a tally in the second to knot the game 1-1. Caleb Salgado led off the inning with a single to left, stole second and moved to third on a Joshua Leonard sacrifice bunt. He crossed the plate on a ground out to second base by Andrew Powell.
Salgado doubled to left field with one out in the fourth but was left stranded. Meanwhile, the Eagles defense was golden as they snuffed out Harrier threats in the first, third, fourth and sixth innings when they turned inning-ending double plays.
Spencer Kornspan single into left field to start the fifth inning. Kyle Shockley's sacrifice bunt advanced Kornspan to second with two outs. Brogan Burcher, who just joined to Eagles earlier this week, was inserted to pinch hit and quickly fell behind in the count 0-2. He smacked the next pitch, an RBI single, into center field to give KSU a 2-1 lead.
A Harrier comeback started with a lead-off double in the last of the seventh. Scottie Sauernheimer cutdown that lead runner who attempted to take third on a sacrifice bunt back to the mound. With one out, MUH hit another two-bagger to left field to put runners on second and third with just one out. A walk loaded the bases.
MUH hit a grounder to second for what looked like a routine double play ball to end the inning and send the game to extra innings. The field umpire however, was out of position and the runner advancing to second was safe due to an impeded throw, while the runner at first was thrown out. A single to deep short ended the game as the runner from third made it to the plate safely.
For the Eagles who did not commit a fielding error, Salgado was perfect at the plate going 3-3 with a double, two singles and a run scored.
The final game of the doubleheader was much different for the Eagles who surrendered 21 hits, nine free passes and four players hit by pitch to the Harriers who won 21-0 in a shortened five inning game.
Meanwhile, KSU Tusc could only manage five singles and never advanced a runner past second base against Hamilton who finished third in the USCAA Small College World Series in 2023 and Runnersup in 2022. On the other side of the diamond MUH had two doubles and a triple as they scored all of their runs over the first three innings of the game.
Caleb Campbell went 2-3 and Joshua Leonard was 2-2 at the plate as both hit a pair of singles.
The Eagles (4-6) play the Harriers in a single 9-inning game on Sunday with a 12 pm first pitch.
Joshua Leonard fields a throw at third base ahead of an advancing runner.
(Photo by Rob Brindley)