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Box Score 2 INDIANA, Pa. – The Clarion University baseball team ran into an offensive explosion by IUP Saturday afternoon and was swept in a doubleheader by the homestanding Crimson Hawks by scores of 22-4 and 17-3.
Big first innings were the key for IUP (16-23 overall, 10-16 PSAC West) with the Crimson Hawks outscoring the Golden Eagles (8-28, 5-21) 18-0 in the two first innings combined including 12-0 in the first inning of Game Two.
The day wasn't a complete loss for Clarion, as
Joe Holmberg had a pair of nice offensive games driving in a total of four runs, two in each game.
In Game One,
Joe Holmberg was 1-for-2 with a two-run single in the second inning, and he followed that up by going 1-for-2 with a rare two-run sacrifice fly to center in Game Two that scored
Derek Danver from third and
Jordan Mesoraco all the way from second.
Freshman
Tyler Falk continued his sensational rookie season going 3-for-7 in the doubleheader to raise his average to .364. He was 2-for-4 in Game One and 1-for-3 in Game Two.
Game One also saw
Ben Thomas going 1-for-3 with a two-run double in the fifth inning, while
Joey Lopez was 2-for-3.
Drew Pirritano went 2-for-4 in Game Two.
But pitching proved to be Clarion's undoing Saturday.
In Game One, five of the six pitchers used by Clarion manager
Mike Brown allowed runs including starter and loser Tyler Deval who lasted 2 1/3 innings giving up 10 runs, eight earned, on seven hits and four walks while striking out one.
But Deval was better than Game Two starter and loser
Kane McCall who was charged with 12 runs, all earned, in just 2/3 of an inning. McCall faced 15 batters retiring just two of them. He gave up nine hits and three walks while also hitting a batter. He did have one strikeout.
Danver was the only Golden Eagle hurler in the twinbill to not be charged with allowing a run pitching 2/3 of an inning scoreless in the sixth inning of Game One allowing a hit and a walk.
Clarion closes out its season at 1 p.m. Sunday when it hosts IUP in a PSAC West doubleheader.
