Shippensburg University’s baseball team is up to a five-game win streak after beating Pitt-Johnstown on Tuesday, before sweeping a four-game weekend series against Lock Haven. 

The Raiders now sit at 21-15 overall, including 14-10 in PSAC play, placing them fourth in the East Division.

The week started with a road trip to Pitt-Johnstown (UPJ), where the Raiders picked up an 8-7 win. 

The Raiders jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the third, but UPJ clawed its way back throughout, making it a one-run game in the seventh. 

Sophomore Brenden Anderson was dominant in relief, though. He pitched 2 2/3 no-hit innings for his second save of the season.

Junior Carter Arbuthnot starred on offense, going 3-for-5 with three RBIs. Graduate Justin Byler also had a pair of RBIs and three runs scored. Freshman Kaleb Maksimik threw four innings of three-run ball in his first collegiate start, and senior Ray Winter got his first collegiate win in relief.

The weekend series against Lock Haven started with a 4-1 victory for the Raiders. It was a balanced offensive effort for Shippensburg, with four different players driving in a run. They also stole five bases, with coach Matt Jones mentioning postgame that LHU was “having a lot of trouble getting the ball down there. We just wanted to keep putting pressure on them.”

Junior Jaxon Dalena got his third win of the year in dominant fashion, striking out six over six innings. Senior Ethan Miller picked up the save with a scoreless seventh inning, his third of the season.

Friday’s second game was a 3-0 Shippensburg triumph, highlighted by a strong start from graduate Ryan Gleason. He went six scoreless innings, striking out four and walking three, moving to 3-2 on the year with the win. Freshman Conner Barto got his second save in relief.

Coach Jones was proud of both his starters postgame, saying, “We attacked with fastballs early, and once they started to be on time, we’d mix in some other stuff. They both did a really good job.”

The series moved to Lock Haven for a pair of Saturday games, beginning with a 6-2 win for Shippensburg. 

Freshman Ryan Novakowski got the win after pitching three innings in relief, allowing two runs.

Senior Andrew Chronister went 1-for-4, the lone hit being his second home run of the season. Byler and junior Gio Calamia each drove in a pair of runs.

The last game of the series went beyond the scheduled seven innings, as the Raiders held on 9-8.

Shippensburg scored four in the seventh inning to move ahead, but LHU tied it with a pair in the bottom half. Byler was the hero, hitting a solo home run in the ninth to put the Raiders ahead for good.

Byler had arguably his best game of the season, going 4-for-5 with four RBIs and three runs scored. 

Miller pitched the final three innings, grabbing his second win of the season.

A four-game tilt against Millersville is next on the schedule for the Raiders, beginning with a pair of home games on Friday at 1 p.m. The series moves to Millersville on Saturday for two more games, also at 1 p.m.

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