ST. LOUIS – [CUMBERLAND BOX] [FAULKNER BOX] Missouri Baptist dropped its first game on Saturday against No. 10 Cumberland, but finished its first road trip of the season with a big win over No. 1 Faulkner University.
After dropping its first two games of the season on Friday afternoon, the Spartans began Saturday's slate with a loss to Cumberland on another come-from-behind effort.
The Bulldogs took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second after Spartan starter Michael Yarborough got first baseman Brady North to ground into the 4-6-3 double play. A walk, a single and a double followed, however, which gave Cumberland a 2-0 lead.
The Bulldogs made it a 3-0 game after three innings, but the Spartans soon carved into the lead. Third baseman Larry Schimsa singled with one out to put the first runner on base in the inning. After Josh Fuentes lined-out to center, Ryan Clarke walked and Trevin Craig reached after being hit by a pitch. With the bases loaded and two away, Pier-Olivier Dostaler singled in a pair of runs to make it a 3-2 deficit.
MBU took the lead in the top of the seventh, thanks to a sacrifice fly by Joe Stropp and a fielding error by Cumberland shortstop Josciel Veres. But the advantage was short-lived. A costly fielding error allowed the tying run and the Bulldogs won it on a walkoff sacrifice fly to center. Stropp and Schimza both recorded RBI in the game along with Dostaler's two in the fourth inning.
In game two, the Spartans finally broke through and posted their first win of the season. The Missouri Baptist offense busted-out for three quick runs in the first, one in the second, and held the defending National Champions to three runs in the game to grab the win.
Trevin Craig hit .429 against the Eagles on the weekend in eight at-bats, while second-baseman Jeff Smith was 1-for-2 with a homerun.
Newcomer Colby Duncan got the win. He was tagged with all three Eagles' runs in three innings of work. Ryan Stapp tossed three innings in relief and allowed just two hits and no runs.
The Spartans are now 1-3 on the season with losses to the Nos. 1, 10 and 15-ranked teams in the nation. The team will continue to play in the south next weekend when the team travels to Mississippi to play four games at Belhaven University. First pitch on Friday is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. against Campbellsville University in the Blazer Classic.
