HANOVER, Md. – Behind impressive pitches performances from starters Alek Elges and Kaden Straily as well as relievers Clay Thompson and Liam McCallum, the Coppin State baseball team swept a NEC doubleheader from Delaware State on Sunday afternoon at Joe Canon Stadium. The Eagles (5-12, 4-5 NEC) took the opener, 4-3, and the nightcap, 7-2 to win the series from the Hornets (4-14, 3-6 NEC) and move into sixth play in the conference standings.
Game 1: Coppin State def. Delaware State, 4-3
Elges went 7.0 innings and allowed just three runs with seven strikeouts to earn his first victory with the Eagles. The righthander from Littleton, Colo., retired the first nine batters he faced and held the Hornets scoreless until the sixth inning.
Damon Gaither and Chris Marte both had a pair of hits and an RBI while Anthony Divittorio also had a multi-hit game. Angel Colon also had an RBI while Kai Holm scored a run along with a base hit and a walk.
Gaither put Coppin on top 1-0 with an RBI single in the first, driving in Holm from second after he singled and advanced into scoring position on a wild pitch. The Eagles added three more in the third to take a 4-0 lead and that was all Elges would need.
Gaither started the inning with a single and got to second as Sam Nieves drew a walk. A double to right center just found the grass and allowed Gaither to score. Colon reached on a fielding error which saw Nieves easily score from third, and the final run came as Colon and Marte were successful on a double steal on second and home, respectively.
Elges gave up back-to-back singles to start the fourth before retiring the next five batters. Five-straight base hits by DSU to start the sixth scored three runs, by Elges settled down with a pair of strikeouts and a groundout.
A gutsy effort in the seventh saw Elges finish the inning before Clay Thompson retired six of the seven batters he faced, including the first five. Thompson got his first save, allowing just a walk while striking out two over the final 2.0 innings.
Game 2: Coppin State def. Delaware State, 7-2
Straily picked up his first collegiate victory, allowing just one run on four hits while striking out three over the first 5.0 innings. McCallum pitched the final 4.0 innings and was charged with just one run on five hits while striking out a pair.
Divittorio and Gaither had a pair of hits apiece as Divittorio also scored twice and drove in two more. Gaither added an RBI and drew a walk. Brody Black added an insurance home run late in the game and Nieves had a pair of sacrifice hits, drove in a run and drew three walks.
Both teams went scoreless the first three innings before DSU got a solo home run in the fourth, but Coppin got the run back and added another in its half of the fifth. Divittorio tied the score with an RBI single to center field, scoring Daniel Moore who was hit by a pitch and got to second on a sac bunt by Noah Murciano. Divittorio later touched home on a sacrifice by by Nieves to right field.
McCallum started the sixth inning on the mound and gave up just a single before the Eagles extended their lead with two more runs. After Colon reached on a leadoff walk, he got to third on a sac bunt and fielding error by the third baseman. A throw trying to nail Black at second allowed Colon to score and Divittorio drove in Moore with another RBI single.
DSU got one run back in the seventh before Black led off the eighth with a homer to left. Two more runs came across during the inning on a single by Gaither to drive in Divittorio. A wild pitch saw Holm touch home after he was hit by a pitch and got to third on Gaither's base knock.
Up Next: Coppin travels to UMBC on Tuesday, March 26 to start a 13-game road trip. Following the 2 pm midweek against the Retrievers, the Eagles will head to Le Moyne for a three-game conference series on March 28-30.
