DAYTON – The University of Dayton baseball team fell twice on Saturday to Oakland University at Woerner Field. The Flyers dropped the opener 5-3 before falling in game two of the doubleheader 2-1 with both games being seven-inning contests.
 
UD falls to 2-7 on the young season after today's games after winning Friday's home opener.
 
GAME ONE
The Flyers got solo home runs from junior Marcos Pujols and graduate student Eddie Pursinger, who each finished with two hits in the contest. Sophomore Jay Curtis also put up three hits for Dayton in the first contest, and the team finished with 11 hits as a team.
 
On the Mound
Graduate student Ben Olson started the game, going 4.1 innings on the mound. The southpaw allowed four hits and three earned runs while picking up seven strikeouts in the contest. He was relieved by senior Andrew Zapka who did not allow an earned run in 2.1 innings on the mound. Zapka allowed just two hits and picked up a strikeout. Freshman Eli Majick entered in the top of the seventh to finish the game, facing two batters striking out one of them.
 
Scoring Plays
Top 2: (1-0 Golden Grizzlies)
Oakland opened the inning with a leadoff single. Two batters later another single moved the runner to third and a sacrifice bunt brought him home making it 1-0 OU.
 
Bottom 2: (1-1 Tie)
The Flyers used a two-out rally to tie the game at one. Curtis singled to right field and senior Mitchell Garrity followed that with a double down the left field line. Senior Mariano Ricciardi loaded the bases with a hit by pitch before an error by the third baseman allowed senior Riley Tirotta to reach and tied the game at 1.
 
Bottom 4: (2-1 Flyers)
Pujols gave the Flyers the lead sending a pitch over the right field wall for his first home run of the season.
 
Top 5: (3-2 Golden Grizzlies)
OU led off the inning with a walk and two batters later a single moved the runner to third. A one-out walk loaded the bases and Zapka entered. Another walk brought the first run of the inning home. The next batter hit a ground ball to junior Ben Blackwell, who was able to get the runner out at second but was unable to turn the double play, scoring the second run.
 
Top 7: (5-2 Golden Grizzlies)
Zapka got the first two Oakland hitters out before a walk and an error put two on. A double to right field scored both baserunners, making it 5-2.
 
Bottom 7: (5-3 Golden Grizzlies)
Pursinger led off the inning with his second home run in two days, closing the gap to two but the Flyers were unable to bring home anyone else and that was the final.
 
GAME TWO
The Flyers left seven runners on base in the 2-1 loss in the second game of the doubleheader. Blackwell picked up two hits to lead UD, but Dayton only picked up four hits as a team in the contest. Sophomores Nate Espelin and Anthony Hattrup combined for 5.1 innings of scoreless baseball in the contest on the mound.
 
On the Mound
Senior Cole Pletka lasted just one-third of an inning allowing one earned run walking three Oakland hitters in the first inning before Espelin entered for him. The sophomore allowed just four hits in 2.2 scoreless innings on the mound picking up a strikeout in the process. Hattrup entered for Espelin and went the same 2.2 innings allowing just two hits and striking out two in his time on the mound. Freshman Austin Brush picked up a big strikeout in the sixth inning to get out of a bases loaded jam before finishing the game in the seventh, allowing one run on a home run.
 
Scoring Plays
Top 1: (1-0 Golden Grizzlies)
Oakland drew three walks to load the bases with one out and a single to left field scored the first run of the game before Espelin forced a double play to end the inning.
 
Bottom 4: (1-1 Tie)
Tirotta walked to lead off the inning and two batters later graduate student Chris Cabrera hit one that deflected from the pitcher's mound toward the shortstop on a designed hit and run. Cabrera beat the throw, which went past the first baseman allowing Tirotta to score all the way from first on the error tying the game at one.
 
Top 7: (2-1 Golden Grizzlies)
Brush allowed a leadoff home run to right field to give Oakland the lead and the Flyers were unable to tie it in the bottom of the inning, making this the final score.
 
Up Next:
The Flyers will return tomorrow to Woerner Field for the series finale. First pitch is scheduled for 12 p.m. and junior Dylan Keller is projected to get the ball on the mound as the starting pitcher.