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Bluefield baseball dropped three games against Shawnee State in Portsmouth, Ohio this weekend in a Mid-South Conference series.

Tim Hartin

March 3, 2013

Bluefield baseball dropped three games against Shawnee State in Portsmouth, Ohio this weekend in a Mid-South Conference series. The games, originally scheduled to be played in Bluefield, were relocated due to weather.

With the losses, Bluefield falls to 7-10 overall and 2-4 in MSC contests. Shawnee State improves to 11-8 overall and stands at 3-0 in MSC play as it opened its conference slate vs. the Rams.

Game 1 – Shawnee State 12, Bluefield 7

Despite hammering 22 hits to the Bears’ 15, the Rams fell 12-7 in the series’ opening game.

Bluefield jumped out to a 4-0 lead through two innings, but an eight-run fourth provided the Bears with a comfortable lead. Shawnee State tacked on three more in the seventh inning and one more in the eighth.

The Rams scored in both the eighth and ninth innings, closing the final score gap to 12-7.

Sean Williams took the loss for the Rams, while Zak Esposito (2-2) was credited with the loss.

Zac Russell-Myers and Jacob Wright led the Rams with four hits apiece. Wright tallied two RBIs, as did center fielder Chris Rosa. Christian Burton and Tyler Lundgren provided three hits apiece.

Game 2 – Shawnee State 5, Bluefield 3

Bluefield once again gained an early lead to open Sunday’s doubleheader. The Rams brought in one run in both the second and fourth innings, gaining a 2-0 advantage.

However, Shawnee State scored one run in both the fifth and sixth frames, before adding two more in the seventh inning. The Bears added a final run in the ninth for the 5-3 win.

Justin Lykins received the loss for the Rams and Cody Strayer (1-0) took his first victory of the year.

Game 3 – Shawnee State 8, Bluefield 5 (8 inn.)

Bluefield made it three-for-three in grabbing the early lead in Sunday’s finale. Bluefield scored one run in both the first and third innings to grab a 2-0 advantage.

Meanwhile, on the mound, Russell-Myers found a groove right from the start, retiring the first 16 Shawnee State batters. The Bears broke through in the sixth inning, scoring four runs to take a 4-2 lead.

Bluefield responded quickly in bottom half of the sixth inning, plating three runs to reclaim a 5-4 advantage.

However, with two-outs in the bottom of the seventh, the Bears squared the contest to extend the game. Shawnee State tacked on three runs in the eighth and closed out the Rams in the bottom half to claim the series sweep.

Russell-Myers was credited the loss and Jordan Williams was given the win for the Bears.

Bluefield is scheduled to play its home opener this Friday, March 8. The Rams and MSC opponent Pikeville will play Friday at 4 p.m., before finishing the series Saturday with a doubleheader starting at 1 p.m.

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