NORFOLK, Va. – Coppin State's baseball team dropped the first of a three-game series at MEAC rival Norfolk State, 6-5, on Saturday afternoon at the Spartans' Marty Miller Field. The Eagles now stand at 5-2 in conference with the Spartans leading the league by one game with a 6-1 mark.
Caleb Duhay and
Erik Crossman both had three hits to lead CSU while five different Eagles drove in a run, including Crossman.
Coppin fell behind early, 3-0 as the Spartans got two runs in the fourth and tacked on another run in the fifth off starting pitcher
Branden Redfern who struck out nine over 6.0 innings. The Eagles finally got to NSU hurler Chase Anderson in the seventh and prompted a pitching change midway through.
Derek Lohr led off the seventh with a single and got to second as
Marcos Castillo reached on a fielding error. Following a couple defensive changes, Crossman singled to load the bases which led to Anderson being replaced on the mound.
Brett Helmbrecht drove in the first run for Coppin with a groundout and a single by
Corey Treyes cut the deficit to a 3-2 game.
Andres Santana then tied the game with another groundout before
Allen Saar gave the Eagles a 4-3 lead with a single.
Devin Rivera Ozuna replaced Redfern to start the seventh and got out of a bases loaded jam unscathed before Crossman gave Coppin an insurance run in the eighth with an RBI single. Ozuna pitched a 1-2-3 eighth inning but allowed three runs in the ninth, with the game-winner coming on a sacrifice fly with Treyes on the mound.
The same two teams will play a doubleheader on Sunday, April 1 starting at 12 pm.
