FREDERICK, Md. – The Arcadia University baseball team, which is receiving votes in this week's American Baseball Coaches Association/Collegiate Baseball Poll, split a MAC Commonwealth doubleheader at Hood College Saturday, taking game-one 7-5 before falling in game-two 5-2.
 
FOR THE RECORD: The Knights are now 14-7 for the season and 5-3 in MAC Commonwealth play, while the Blazers are now 6-12 overall and 2-6 in league action. The two teams will play the third and deciding game of the conference series tomorrow at Arcadia's Erny Field at 3 p.m.
 
GAME ONE: ARCADIA 7, HOOD 5
 
HOW IT HAPPENED: The Knights plated three runs in the top of the first inning, which included an RBI-double from senior Jordan Draude, who scored on junior Nick Cardace's RBI-single to right. Cardace later scored on a sacrifice fly for sophomore Sean Carew. The score remained 3-0 until the bottom of the fifth, where Hood scored four times to take the lead. Cam Esposito drove in two runs with his triple to right before scoring on Jordan Patterson's single to center.
 
Arcadia rallied for four runs in the top of the seventh to regain the lead for good, and Hood added one run in the bottom of the frame for the 7-5 final. In the top half of the inning, Draude drove in sophomore Luke Hohenstein with a double to left before scoring on Cardace's double down the left field line with the game-winning run. The Knights then loaded the bases with one out and scored two runs on an aggressive squeeze play in which Hood catcher Josh Gall failed to cover the plate after throwing down to first to record the second out of the inning. Freshman Tyler Wisnewski scored from third, while senior Justin Chasmar scored from second.
 
ON THE HILL: Junior Ryan Ulrich picked up the win after allowing just one hit over his two innings of relief, while senior Chris Keesser picked up his fifth save of the season after closing the game in the seventh. Patterson took the loss after allowing four runs (one earned) in the seventh.
 
ARCADIA AT BAT: Draude finished 2 for 3 with two doubles, two RBI and two runs scored, while Cardace was 2 for 4 with a double, two RBI and one run scored. Sophomore Nick Ponente was able to drive in two runs with his pinch-hit ground out to Gall in the seventh.
 
HOOD AT BAT: Esposito was 2 for 4 with a triple, two RBI and two runs scored from the leadoff spot, while Nathan Kessler was 1 for 3 with an RBI and a runs scored.
 
GAME TWO: HOOD 5, ARCADIA 2
 
HOW IT HAPPENED: The Knights got out to a 2-1 lead after two, scoring runs on Chasmar's single up the middle in the first and sophomore Bryan Gillen's single through the left side in the second. The score stayed that way until the bottom of the fifth, where the Blazers again struck for four runs to go up 5-2. Quinn Fulton drove in the game-tying and game-winning runs with his single up the middle and then scored on Patterson's double down the left field line. Esposito scored the final run after Dylan Johnson drew a walk with the bases loaded.  
 
ON THE HILL: Travis Schweizer went the distance for Hood to pick up the win, allowing two runs on seven hits. Freshman Andrew Scholz suffered his first career loss after allowing five runs on six hits and two walks in 4.1 innings.
 
ARCADIA AT BAT: Chasmar and Gillen were both 1 for 3 with an RBI in the game, while Draude was 1 for 3 with a run scored. Wisnewski was 1 for 2 and scored once.
 
HOOD AT BAT: Fulton was 2 for 3 with two RBI and a run scored, while Johnson was 1 for 2 with two RBI. Esposito went 2 for 4 and scored two runs.