FREDERICKSBURG, Va.- The Juniata baseball team gave up the go-ahead run in the eighth inning of a 4-3 defeat before falling 11-3, dropping its first series of the season to Mary Washington.
Ethan Pfeffer was among four players that collected two hits in game one, as the freshman first baseman scored an RBI single and double in the contest. Dakotah Snyder, Joey Woodrow, and Corey Daniels were the other players with two hits.
Jack Dovidio made it through five and one-third innings with three earned runs and four hits, while Robbie Pliszka delivered two and two-thirds innings of one-run, one-hit relief.
Neither side got on base in the first inning, then Juniata got runners to the corners with two outs on a Michael Warren single before a groundout ended the second. Dovidio delivered his second straight inning with no runners before facing his first jam with runners at the corners with one out. He generated two-straight groundouts to get out of the third inning.
Juniata opened the fourth with two-straight singles followed by a double play initiated at third base that put the remaining runner at second. Daniels stole third, and Pfeffer put the Eagles on the board with a single to center field.
Dovidio continued his early dominance with two more innings with no baserunners before the dynamic of the game changed in the sixth inning. Juniata found one more run in the sixth inning via a two-out Pfeffer double to left, scoring Snyder following his leadoff single.
Mary Washington drew level with two runs in the sixth inning. A one-out walk for UMW was followed by a stolen base and a double to get them on the board. Dovidio was relieved for at this point, followed by another run-scoring double to go ahead 3-2. Pliszka got two outs on a flyout and groundout with three innings to draw level.
The Eagles entered the seventh facing a reliever for the first time and quickly tied the game. Pinch hitter Isaac Whysong walked with one out and got all the way to third on a fielding error from the pitcher before being the victim of a fielder's choice going home on a ground ball.
Woodrow got aboard on the fielder's choice and swiftly stole second. Snyder then cashed him in with his second double of the game.
UMW only managed a walk in the bottom of the seventh, but they found the run they needed an inning later. A one-out infield error saw the Mary Washington runner get all the way to third, and a sacrifice did the trick. Juniata was then put down in order in the ninth.
Mary Washington was persistent in their offensive effort in game two in the 11-4 defeat, scoring runs in every inning between the second and the sixth inning, including a three-run second inning and a four-run fourth inning.
The offensive production was distributed for the Eagles in the contest, as Aaron Bollinger and Daniels tallied two hits, and Will Kinchington, David Beard, and Woodrow each collected an RBI.
Standout producers throughout the series include Pfeffer (5 for 11, 4 RBIs, 1 2B), Snyder (6 for 12, 3 RBIs, 1 2B), and Woodrow (5 for 11, 2 RBIs, 1 2B).
The Eagles return to action this weekend with a Saturday, March 4th, doubleheader against Westminster. It marks the first meeting between the teams.
