HANOVER, Md. – Two big innings by Iona proved to be the difference as the Coppin State baseball team fell to the Gaels, 18-2, on a windy Sunday afternoon at Joe Cannon Stadium. Both teams now stand at 1-1 on the young season.
Derek Blackmore and
Jayden Asencio both had a hit and drove in a run while combining for three walks.
Gavin Grutzmacher and
Sam Nieves were the only other Eagles who had base hits.
Jeremiah Eneix was charged with seven runs over the first 1.1 innings while striking out three.
Brandon Stephens had a pair of strikeouts over the next 2.2 innings.
Park Roeder and
Tyrone Lake combined to throw the next two innings and
Jaedin Hurd threw a scoreless seventh while striking out one.
The Eagles pitchers walked 13 batters and hit five while allowing 11 hits.
Eneix struck out two in the first inning and the Eagles were retired on a close 1-6-3 double play in the bottom half. After he fanned the first batter of the second, Eneix hit the next batter and gave up an opposite field triple before Iona broke out for seven runs.
Nieves and Blackmore had back-to-back doubles to start the second and get a run back, but Iona tacked on another run in it's half of the third. Asencio drove Blackmore from second in the bottom of the fourth before the Gaels put an eight spot on the board in the fifth.
The Gaels scored another two runs in the sixth before Hurd retired the side in the seventh.
Coppin will travel to play Navy on Tuesday, February 18 at 2:00 pm in Annapolis.
