BRIDGEPORT, Conn. – Coppin State's baseball team fell in the series finale at Sacred Heart, 9-8, in ten innings on Sunday afternoon at Veterans Park. The Eagles fell to 6-18 overall and 5-10 in the NEC while the league-leading Pioneers improved to 15-13 on the year and 12-3 in league play.
Kai Holm had a pair of hits while
Braylon Watson drove in a pair to lead the Coppin offense.
Damon Gaither, Samuel Nieves and
Jayden Asencio all had a hit and a pair of walks apiece. A day after a ninth inning grand slam,
Daniel Moore scored once, drove in another and was walked three times.
Kaden Straily got the not on the mound and allowed six runs over the first three innings while striking out three and walking just one.
Jackson Montgomery went the next 2.1 innings without allowing a run before
Christian Pareja struck out a batter and walked another.
Clay Thompson fanned six batters over the next 3.0 innings, giving up just two runs on three hits while walking four.
John Neeld took the loss, allowing a leadoff home run in the tenth after getting the final out of the ninth.
After a scoreless first, Sacred Heart struck first with two runs in the second. It's lead was short-lived as Coppin put four runs on the board in the third. Three-straight walks to start the inning loaded the bases and Watson tied it up with a two-run single to drive in Nieves and Asencio. A groundout by Moore gave the Eagles a 3-2 lead before
Noah Murciano extended it with an RBI single to drive in Watson.
Sacred Heart scored three in its half of the inning to retake the lead, but a sacrifice fly by
Victor Alongi in the fourth tied it back up. Scoring on the play was Gaither who led off with a walk before getting to third after a single by Nieves and a wild pitch.
Once again, the Pioneers regained the lead with a run in the fourth, but again, the Eagles responded. Coppin tied it up with an RBI groundout by
Anthony Divittorio, driving in Moore, and Gaither singled home Holm to put CSU on top, 7-6.
Montgomery tossed a scoreless fifth before Pareja and Thompson held Sacred Heart in the sixth. Both teams came up empty in the seventh, but Asencio gave the Eagles an 8-6 lead when his single down the right field line brought in Nieves from second.
The hosts got a leadoff home run in the ninth and tied the score after a walk and three wild pitches. Neeld relieved Thompson with two outs and got his first batter to foul out to retire the side.
Holm recorded a one-out double in the tenth, but was left stranded, and Sacred Heart capitalized with a walk-off home run to lead off the bottom half.
Coppin travels to George Washington University on Tuesday, April 9 for a 3 pm start before heading to Norfolk State for a three-game NEC series on April 12-14.
