Shippensburg University’s baseball team dropped its first two games against Millersville on Friday at home but then ended the week with two wins against conference rival Millersville.

The rivals played two seven-inning doubleheaders on a cold, rainy Friday afternoon at Fairchild Field. Game 1 was a low-scoring pitcher's duel. Shippensburg took the early lead on an RBI single by freshman Ty Sherman. The offense remained quiet for the rest of the game.

Junior Jaxon Dalena threw for seven innings and allowed one earned run with five strikeouts. The only run allowed was a home run by Millersville redshirt freshman Hunter Stevens that tied the game at 1-1

Millersville took the lead in the top of the eighth inning from an RBI groundout to put the Marauders on top. The Raiders offense went blank in the bottom of the eighth to surrender the 2-1 loss.

The rain died down for Game 2, which featured another low-scoring matchup with good pitching. Millersville got on the board early with an RBI single by junior Sam Morris. Redshirt junior Keegan Stolits made it 2-0 in the third with an RBI single to right-center. 

Freshman Connor Barto allowed two earned runs in his 4.2-inning outing. 

The Raiders scored with a Sherman double in the bottom half of the third, but the offense went scoreless the rest of the game. The Raiders dropped Game 2 by a final score of 2-1. 

On Saturday, the Raiders traveled to Millersville for a road doubleheader in sunny conditions. Senior Austin Baal opened the scoring in Game 1 with a solo home run to right field in the second inning. Sophomore Mike Heckman then singled to put the Raiders up 2-0.

Shippensburg got more insurance runs in the fifth when Baal hit another home run. The three-run shot put Shippensburg up by five.

Sophomore J.T. Weaver threw a complete game shutout with four strikeouts. This was the first time in 11 seasons that Millersville had been shut out at home as the Raiders captured a 5-0 win.

Game 2 also ended on a high note. Grad student Justin Byler had an RBI double in the first and a two-run home run to put Shippensburg up 3-0. The offense was not done, as freshmen Brady Harbach and junior Gio Calamia each had an RBI single to increase their lead by five runs.

The Marauders answered back with two runs in the fourth and fifth innings, but the Raiders still won 5-2.

The Raiders have a 23-17 record with five games left in the regular season. Their next matchup will be an away doubleheader against the Kutztown Golden Bears on Friday at 1 p.m. 

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