COLUMBIA, Md. – Ending their weekend series in Maryland, the Clarion baseball team held on for a pair of close wins at Blandair Regional Park on Saturday afternoon, topping Lock Haven in both ends of a doubleheader. The Golden Eagles won the opening game 2-0 and the late game by an 8-7 decision. The Golden Eagles (3-4) will head to Glenville, WV for the PSAC / Mountain East Challenge next weekend taking on Concord on Friday, West Liberty on Saturday and completing the trip against Fairmont State on Sunday.
 
Game 1
Clarion scored a pair of runs in the top of the first inning to leapfrog the Bald Eagles early in the contest, defeating Lock Haven 2-0 for their first victory of the afternoon. Sophomore Kyler Mellott earned the win after tossing a complete game shutout. Mellott fanned 11 hitters, while allowing only five hits in the game and walking just one. Mellott escaped a jam in the bottom of the fourth inning stranding two Lock Haven runners after an Isaac Porter double and a D. Haskins single. Mellott would go on to strikeout Dillon Good to end the inning and the Bald Eagle threat.
 
In the bottom of the fifth Mellott worked out of another jam, after a single and a walk put runners on first and second base, getting Max Joseph to fly out to right-field to end the inning.
 
The Golden Eagles opened the scoring with a double from Bryce Jackson in the top of the first inning, scoring leadoff hitter Nick Fugh who reached on a walk and Chandler Palyas who was hit by a pitch in the previous at bat. In that same inning Brian Casper grounded out to the shortstop advancing Jackson to third. Threatening to score Alex Ficorilli grounded out to short and Jackson was thrown out trying to score to end the inning.
 
Shutting down the Bald Eagles all day, Mellott continued to keep the Lock Haven hitters off balance, striking out the side in the bottom of the seventh to end the ball game.
 
Game 2
The Golden Eagles utilized a host of pitchers in game two, ultimately resulting in an 8-7 win over the Bald Eagles. Jeremy Frazier got the nod on the bump, going 3.0 innings striking out two Lock Haven hitters rendering five hits and two earned runs. Dereck Pritchard was the last pitcher to throw before the Golden Eagles took the lead for good, coming in for the top of the fifth inning before Clarion scored twice in the bottom of the sixth.
 
Clarion recorded 11 hits in the second game and made every one of those hits count.  After Ficorili singled in the bottom of the first, he stole second to work his way into scoring position. Jackson doubled in the very next at bat, allowing Ficorilli to score and give Clarion a 1-0 lead. Casper singled to left center field on the first pitch of his at bat, scoring Jackson from second making it 2-0 Blue and Gold. In the first pitch of his first at bat of the game DH Dillon Wolbert sent a deep drive over the left-center field fence for his first homerun of the season making the score 4-0.
 
Lock Haven would battle back though tying it up in the top of the third inning, but Casper put his team on top for good with his second and third RBsI of the game.  With the bases loaded after a Thomas Lavin single, a Fugh single to center field and a Ficorilli singled, Casper roped a fastball past the Lock Haven middle infielders scoring Lavin and Fugh from second and third. Pritchard closed the door striking out the side in the top of seventh and ending the back and forth battle of the birds.