ALTOONA, Pa.- The Juniata baseball team snagged a pair of high-scoring victories over Penn State Altoona on Wednesday afternoon, taking game one 12-5 and game two 18-7 to snap a 13-game losing streak.
The Juniata offense combined for 11 runs on 12 hits in their 12-5, seven-inning victory in game one. Michael Warren posted his third four-RBI game of the season as he went 2-for-4 with a double and a walk. Other strong offensive performances in the game came from Corey Daniels (2-for-5, 3 SB, 3 RB) who tied for the second-most stolen bases in a single game in program history with three, and David Beard (2-for-5, 3 RBI, 1 2B, 3 R).
Connor Rohm made it through three and one-third innings with four earned runs and five hits. Jason Waguespack stepped in for the final three and two-thirds innings conceding just one earned run, four hits with two strikeouts.
Daniels got aboard with one out in the first inning on an error and punished the Lions by swiping both second and third base. Warren followed with a walk, then a Joey Woodrow single scored the first of four Juniata runs in the inning. The Altoona starter then conceded three consecutive walks and a Matthew Quigley single for the inning's fourth run before finding a popout.
Rohm gave up two singles in the first but made use of popout and groundout to escape the frame.
Juniata found two more runs in the second in another inning started by Daniels' speed on the basepaths. He singled and stole second for his third of the game to lead off the inning. A Warren ground for the second out advanced him to third, Woodrow was hit, then Beard scored both with a double to right-center.
Altoona managed one single in the second, then Juniata returned in the third with two more runs for an 8-0 lead. Caden Collins was hit to open the inning and he then stole second and got to third on an errant throw. Matthew Quigley walked, and Dakotah Snyder reached on a fielder's choice as Collins was out on a throw home from the third baseman. Evan Mock singled to load the bases with two outs, then Warren scored two with a single to left.
Altoona found their first two runs of the game in the bottom half of the inning; A leadoff walk and a steal got things started, then a double scored the first run. The next batter was hit, then an infield groundout advanced runners to second and third. Juniata ate one run on an infield groundout then produced a flyout to end the inning.
Juniata had just one single in the fourth, while Altoona added two more runs to make it an 8-4 game. A walk and double put two runners in scoring position with one out and Waguespack was called upon in relief. He opened by conceding both inherited runners on back-to-back singles before producing a foul out and fielder's choice at third base.
Juniata posted their final three runs in the top of the fifth inning with five hits. Snyder and Daniels singled to start, then Mock produced a sacrifice bunt where the out was earned at second base. Warren doubled to score both runners aboard, while Beard later scored Warren who advanced to third on a groundout.
Altoona collected one run in the fifth to make it an 11-5 game. Two one-out singles got runners on the corners, then a fielder's choice scored one before a flyout ended the inning.
Both sides went down in order in the sixth and seventh innings for the game's final 11-5 scoreline.
A seven-run first inning of game and a four-run second inning put the Eagles in the driver's seat of game two as they claimed an 18-7 victory in seven innings, the most runs in a single game for Juniata this season.
Snyder (3-for-4, 1 2B, 3 RBI, 2 SB, 1 R, 1 BB) and Eric Soccio (3-for-3, 4 RBI, 3 R) each had explosive offensive performances in game two, while Warren (1-for-2 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 2 R) went deep in the first inning with a two-run shot for his second homer of the season.
Hunter Tate stepped in from the bullpen in the second inning and provided two and two-thirds innings of no run baseball with three hits, a walk, and four strikeouts to get Juniata into the middle innings, as the Juniata bullpen gave up just one run over five and two-thirds innings of service.
Juniata needed just four hits in the first inning to score their seven runs as they made use of three walks, an error, and a dropped third strike. Both of the Eagles' two extra-base hits came in the first via Warren's home run and Snyder's double.
Altoona got back within striking distance with four runs and four hits in the bottom half of the inning including a two-run home run early in the frame. They loaded the bases with two outs, but a popout left the bases jammed.
Juniata struck for four in the second and two in the third, with all hits coming on singles. Penn State Altoona managed one run in the second for a 13-5 game through three innings. They managed one more run in the fourth off two singles and an infield error for Juniata.
The Eagles increased their insurance with four runs in the fifth inning as the Altoona defense committed three infield errors in a game where they had seven total, with Juniata needing just two hits to secure the four runs.
Altoona got one more run back in the sixth, while Juniata put one on the board in the top of the seventh in another error-ridden inning for the Lions. Harrison Leister took care of the final four outs for Juniata, striking out three of the batters he faced.
Juniata faces another midweek opponent tomorrow as they head to Lancaster Bible College for a single game starting at 3:30 pm.
