AUBURNDALE, FL - The Bard College baseball team was defeated twice Saturday morning in Florida, losing to Mount St. Joseph University, 11-3 and 6-0.
With the losses, the Raptors dropped to 2-4 on the year. The Lions of Mount St. Joseph improved to 9-6 overall.
While the final score of Game One might not indicate it, the opening game turned out to be a pitchers' duel between Bard's Evan Richardson and Mount St. Joseph's Alex Wagner (West Chester, OH).
Richardson recorded 10 strikeouts over six innings and allowed just three earned runs on the day. Wagner meanwhile, pitched a complete game, as he went all seven innings. He finished with eight strikeouts of his own and allowed just two earned runs on five hits.
After each side scored a run in the third inning, Bard added two more runs in the bottom of the fourth, thanks to a Lee Perry RBI single and a Mount St. Joseph fielding error.
The Lions answered with an RBI single in the fifth to cut the lead to 3-2, and were able to grab the lead an inning later thanks to two runs scoring on two different fielding errors.
After a 1-2-3 bottom of the sixth, the Raptors allowed seven runs in the top of the seventh to seal the win for Mount St. Joseph.
Dillon Daine went 2-for-3 in the game with a single, a double and a run. Perry and Jordan Myers each picked up an RBI in the effort.
Ryan Murray (Cincinnati, OH) finished with three hits and three RBIs in the win.
In Game Two, the quality pitching continued for the Lions, as they were able to hold the Raptors to no runs on five hits. Mount St. Joseph's offense also remained hot in the second game, as the team grabbed the lead with four runs in the third and added two more in the fourth.
Luke Klatke picked up the loss for Bard after he allowed four runs (two earned) on five hits over 2.2 innings. Wyatt Myers (Waynesville, OH) picked up the win for the Lions after he threw five scoreless innings to open the game.
Jeff Goldrosen went 2-for-3 with a single and double in the loss.
Up next for the Raptors is day two of their Florida spring break trip, as they take on University of Minnesota Morris tomorrow (3/18) beginning at 9:30 a.m.