HANOVER, Md. --- The Golden Eagle baseball team lost the rubber match in their three-game series at Frostburg State on Sunday afternoon, dropping a 10-9 decision to the Bobcats in the final inning in Hanover.
The game took a number of big momentum swings, with the Golden Eagles in particular landing two big blows late in the game. The teams were fairly evenly matched early on, with Scott McManamon giving Clarion a 1-0 lead in the first inning on a groundout that scored Kasey Shughart, and Daren Byers scoring Caden Contant in the fourth inning on a sacrifice fly to tie it up at 2-2.
Trailing 3-2 entering the sixth inning, the Golden Eagles made their first big move of the day. With runners on first and second with one out, Byers doubled to center field to score Shughart and tie the game at 3-3. Lenny Piccini followed up with an RBI single in the next at-bat, making it 4-3, and Emerson Abromavage hit a hard shot to shortstop that allowed Byers to come across. Nate Petke closed the scoring in the inning with a single to left field, scoring Piccini and making it 6-3.
Undeterred, the Bobcats scored three runs in the sixth inning, including a two-run home run by Mikey Guy to tie the game. Clarion responded with three runs in the seventh inning, starting with another RBI from Byers. McManamon and Piccini scored on passed balls to make it 9-6, but the Bobcats again chipped away at the lead. Frostburg State eventually tied and took the lead in the ninth inning, scoring to make it 10-9.
Shughart and Contant both recorded two base hits, with the latter scoring three total runs and the former two. Byers finished with a team-high three RBIs.
