WILSON, N.C. – Thanks to a big game by Tyler Falk that included three RBIs and two home runs against Pitt-Johnstown, the Clarion University baseball team earned a split in a pair of games with UPJ  and Kutztown Sunday in Wilson, N.C.
 
Falk's efforts came in the next game of the day for the Golden Eagles (1-3), a 6-3 win over the Mountain Cats. Clarion dropped the first game of the day to Kutztown, 3-1.
 
Back to the UPJ contest.
 
Clarion fell behind 3-0 after a half inning thanks to three unearned runs by the Mountain Cats off Clarion starter Sean White.
 
But the Golden Eagle bats went to work immediately in the bottom of the inning in support of the right hander getting two of those tallies back thanks to a an RBI double by Mike Lockhart that scored Falk, who had walked with two outs. Derek Danver then drove home Lockhart with a run-scoring single.
 
Clarion tied the game in the second when Joe Holmberg doubled with one out and Drew Pirritano and Joey Lopez drew walks to load the bases for Falk, who delivered with an RBI sacrifice fly to center.
 
The Golden Eagles then took the lead in the third when Matt Kamenicky was hit by a pitch, moved to second on a wild pitch and scored on a single by Ben Thomas.
 
Falk, who was 2-for-2 with three runs scored and three RBIs in the game, hit his first home run of the game and his first of the season leading off the fourth to make it 5-3, and the sophomore, who was the PSAC West Freshman of the Year a year ago, hit his second long ball leading off the eighth to provide some insurance.
 
But insurance wasn't necessary for White and reliever Austin Mike, who didn't allow a run after the first.
 
White got the win going the first five innings and allowing the three unearned runs on seven hits and a walk while striking out two. Mike then picked up his first save going four innings allowing just one hit and a walk while striking out four.
 
Danver also had three hits for the Golden Eagles going 3-for-5 with an RBI, while Holmberg was 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored.
 
In the first game of the day, the loss to Kutztown, Clarion got another well-pitched game from the trio of Kane McCall, Alex Borofski and Chase Gorski, but the Golden Eagle offense couldn't produce a timely hit despite getting eight hits in the game.
 
McCall went the first five innings allowing two runs on four hits and a walk while striking out four. Borofski pitched two innings of scoreless ball allowing one hit and two walks, while Gorski also went two innings allowing one run on two hits while striking out two.
 
Clarion fell behind 2-0 thanks to single Kutztown runs in the second and third innings before the Golden Eagles halved the deficit with a run in the sixth when Pirritano singled leading off was sacrificed to by Joey Lopez and scored on a Danver two-out single.   
 
But that was the lone run Clarion got despite having at least one runner on in each of the final three innings including having the tying run at first in the ninth with one out after a Lockhart double and a Tyler Delval pinch-hit single. But Kamenicky and Mike both struck out ending the game.
 
Lockhart had a pair of hits in four at bats as did Kamenicky.
 
Clarion returns to action Monday with a doubleheader against Kutztown in Wilson.