CLARION, Pa. --- A walkoff win in extra innings in the first game of the doubleheader highlighted a picturesque Senior Day celebration on Friday, as the Golden Eagle baseball team picked up a split against Gannon at Memorial Stadium. Clarion rallied from a 6-1 deficit in the first game to win 7-6 in eight innings, but fell to the Golden Knights by a 3-1 score in the late game.
 
Clarion 7, Gannon 6 (8 inn.)
 
RECAP: The Golden Eagles erased a late deficit in the last two innings of the first game of the day, coming back from 6-1 to stun the Golden Knights in extra innings. Gannon rode a big top of the sixth inning to take the lead, but Clarion came through in clutch situations to rally.
 
The first counter-punch from the Golden Eagles came in the bottom of the sixth inning, all without recording a single hit. Caden Contant drew a leadoff walk and advanced to second when shortstop Alex Bemis was unable to hold onto a ball for a forceout, putting Sam Economy aboard on a fielder's choice. Lenny Piccini drew a walk and Daren Byers drove in a run the hard way, taking a pitch to the side to advance everyone one base. Connor Booth plated another run with a productive ground ball double play, bringing Economy home to cut the score to 6-3.
 
Logan Schlegel and Dan Miller combined for a scoreless top of the seventh to keep the game close, and the Golden Eagles pounced. Tyler Meachum drew a leadoff walk and made his way home just seconds later when Scotty McManamon crushed a two-run home run into the wind blowing in from left field, pulling the Golden Eagles within a single run. The chances of a rally looked bleak when a batter's interference call on Caden Contant struck him out and erased a stealing Kasey Shughart from the basepaths, but Clarion was undeterred. They strung together three consecutive singles, with Byers driving a pitch to right center to score pinch runner Tyson Gill from second and tie the game.
 
Reilly Shafer came out in extra innings and shut out the Golden Knights in the top of the eighth, punctuating the inning by picking off Brendan Koroly with two outs. McManamon and Shughart provided the late-game heroics, first with McManamon drawing a two-out walk and stealing second on a 1-2 pitch. Shughart followed with a fly ball down the right field line, dropping it in for the RBI single and the walkoff win.
 
Shughart finished 2-for-05 with the RBI, while Piccini went 2-for-3 and Booth 2-for-4. Starter Danny Fox got a no decision after allowing just three hits and two runs in 5.0 innings.
 
Gannon 3, Clarion 1
 
RECAP: Miscues haunted the Golden Eagles in the second game of the doubleheader, as they committed four errors that ultimately allowed the Golden Knights to score all three of their runs unearned. Neither side scraped together much offense otherwise, with both Clarion and Gannon recording three hits.
 
 The Golden Knights scored the first run of the game in the top of the third inning, when Miguel Vega stole third base with two outs. Mason Kepler's throw was high and went into left field, allowing Vega to score from third to give his side a 1-0 advantage. An error by Contant at third base in the top of the fourth enabled Koroly to advance to third with one out, and Bemis scored him with a sac fly to right field that made it 2-1.
 
Clarion got one of those runs back in the bottom of the fifth inning, with the seniors once again playing a big part in the proceedings. Kepler drew a leadoff walk and advanced all the way to third on McManamon's double to deep left field, and Shughart scored the catcher with a sacrifice fly of his own that cut the deficit to 2-1. Ethan Giangiulio kept the train going by drawing a walk, and he and McManamon both advanced a base on a wild pitch before the Golden Knights got out of the inning.
 
Gannon scored an insurance run in the sixth inning, and the Golden Eagles stranded Meachum on the basepaths in the bottom of the seventh to wrap the game.

Ryan Gallagher took the hard-luck loss, allowing three runs - all unearned - in seven innings. He was dominant at times against the Golden Knights, whiffing 10 batters and walking only one.
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