LAKELAND, Fl.-The Juniata baseball team opened their season with a 9-2 loss to Loras, Sunday afternoon at Henley Field.
The Eagles went three and out to start the game in the top half of the first. In the bottom half of the inning, the Duhawks got a runner to third with two outs, but Gavin Grimaldi (Clymer, Pa. / Penns Manor) got the next batter to ground out to short to avoid any damage.
The teams traded zeros in the second inning, but the third inning saw two runs cross. It appeared the Eagles would strike first, as Larry Corle (Martinsburg, Pa. / Central High school) singled before advancing all the way to third on an error by the pitcher, but JC could not get him home as the inning ended with a strikeout. Loras managed to strike twice in the bottom half of the inning as Juniata trailed 2-0 after three.
Adam Kipp (Mt. Wolf, Pa. / Northeastern) started the fourth with a single and Hunter Price (Huntingdon, Pa. / Huntingdon Area) advanced him to second. Matt Innella (Commack, N.Y. / Commack) reached safely via an error by the shortstop and Kipp advanced to third. Sam Craig (Mullicahill, N.J. / Kingsway Regional) sent him home to get the Eagles within one, but that was the Eagles lone run in the inning.
The Duhawks separated with five runs in the bottom of the sixth, with three of them coming via homerun and two more in the eighth to make it 9-1.
Devyn Carper (Altoona, Pa. / Altoona Area) scored on a wild pitch in the ninth.
The Eagles will take the field again tomorrow against Franklin & Marshall at 1:30.