Box Score

ROCK HILL, SC -- Winthrop failed to complete a late-game comeback as the Eagles fall short to Penn 6-4 Friday night at The Winthrop Ballpark.
 
The Eagles bats came alive in an offensive explosion yielding 14 hits by Winthrop hitters.  However, the hits did not translate to runs as the Eagles failed to convert leaving 18 base runners stranded.
 
The Quakers struck first scoring a pair of runs in the second and third innings which included a two-run home run blast off Eagles' starter Matt Pierpont (1-2) over the left field wall by Ryan Deitrich to give Penn a 4-0 lead.  The Quakers tacked on single runs in the fourth and sixth extending their lead to 6-0.
 
Winthrop rallied back in the late innings scoring four unanswered runs including RBI hits by Clay Altman and TJ Olesczuk.  The Eagles continued to battle back in the ninth, however, the rally was cut short as Quaker closer Ronnie Glen was able to retire the side stranding Winthrop's tying run at first base.
 
“The key to this game was we had runners at third with less than two outs a few times.  If we pick up those runs once or twice, we have a different ballgame,” head coach Tom Riginos commented after the game.
 
The loss drops Winthrop's record to 3-10 on the season and extends its losing streak to five games while Penn improves to 3-4.
 
The Quakers' bats gave starting pitcher Conner Cuff (1-1) a 6-0 cushion through six innings as he was able to keep Winthrop's offense at bay limiting them to one run in 6.1 innings pitched.
 
The Eagles were able to get into the runs column in the bottom of the seventh when pinch hitter Max Vogel was hit with a pitch with the bases loaded scoring Matt Lobacz.  Winthrop continued to climb back against the Quaker bullpen in the eighth when Altman singled up the middle scoring Leighton Daniels from third base who had reached base on an error by the shortstop.  Olesczuk followed with a two-out double to the left field wall scoring Cody Dolan who had reach base on a single earlier in the inning.
 
Down 6-3 in the ninth, Winthrop threatened again with the bases loaded with one out but managed to score only one run on a sacrifice fly by Dolan scoring Chad Smith. 
 
The Eagles got huge performances at the plate from Altman and Olesczuk who both had four hits and an RBI on the night.  Winthrop also got a nice offensive contribution from Dolan who dropped in three hits including an RBI for his sixth multi-hit game of the season.  With those hits, Dolan extended his reached base streak to 12 games
 
The Winthrop bullpen continues to come on strong and give the team an opportunity to win as Zach Sightler, Josh Strong, and Tyler Klitsch combined for three innings of scoreless relief.
 
The Eagles look to rebound against Penn Saturday as the teams are slated for a 3 p.m. first pitch.   Freshman right-hander Joey Strain (0-1) is expected to take the hill for Winthrop.  The ticket window at The Winthrop Ballpark will be opens an hour before game time.