Box Score 1 | Box Score 2
Box Score (Game One)


Box Score (Game Two)



DURHAM, N.C. (www.NCCUEaglePride.com) – North Carolina Central University entered play on Sunday afternoon with a chance to clinch not only its second series against MEAC (Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference) foe Savannah State since 2008, but its second of the season with at least one win in the doubleheader but the Eagles blew a 6-5 lead in game one falling 8-7, and was shutout in game two, 3-0, to lose the series and drop to 3-6 in conference play at the Durham Athletic Park.
 
Game one was a back-and-forth affair that saw the Tigers squeak out an RBI in the second inning to take a 1-0 advantage on a Chris Arnold bloop single to bring in his fifth RBI of the season.
 
The Eagles answered on behalf of a few SSU mistakes in the bottom of the third to the tune of five runs on two hits aided by three Tiger errors.  With one out in the frame, sophomore Dylan Drayton (Raleigh, N.C.) reached on an error and advanced to second on a seeing-eye single to right field by Nate Smith (Raleigh, N.C.).  Drayton plated the first run for NCCU on the day on a second error by SSU’s Todd Hagen putting runners at first and second with one out.  After a Troy Marrow (Lutherville, Md.) walk, sophomore Carter Williamson (Roanoke, Va.) reached base on a second fielder’s choice in the inning as Darien Campbell mishandled a throw putting another error on the board and scoring both Smith and Diaz putting NCCU up 3-1.  Senior Ross Plummer (Winston-Salem, N.C.) put the finishing touches on the frame with a double to right centerfield which drove in two runs and put the maroon and gray ahead 5-1 after three complete.
 
The resilient Tigers answered in the top of the fourth with four runs of their own that included a three-run bomb by Uriah Virgo which tied that game at 5-5 heading into the bottom of the fourth.
 
With two outs and nobody on base in the bottom-half of the fourth, NCCU’s Smith drilled his second home run of the season to put the Eagles in front 6-5 after four innings.
 
The Eagles seemed to be heading for the win after keeping the Tigers off the board in the fifth and sixth innings as game one starter Glenn Frye (Lillington, N.C.) and reliever Gavin Guarrera (Webster, N.Y.) combined to keep NCCU ahead.
 
Then it all came apart in the top of the seventh inning.  After Savannah State leadoff batter, Campbell recorded a single, Hagen reached base on a bunt single and moved to second and third base respectively on a Jacob Russell (Winston-Salem, N.C.) wild pitch putting runners at second and third with no outs.  SSU’s Joseph McCrary recorded the first out of the inning with a strikeout but designated hitter Peter Poole helped load the bases with a walk, and Julius Green tied the game when he was plunked by Russell.  With the score 6-6 and one out, first baseman Matthew Oglesby hit a hard grounder to NCCU first baseman Deion Doubledee (Wilson, N.C.) who’s errant throw got away from Williamson allowing two Tiger runs to score putting them up 8-6 heading into the bottom of the seventh inning.
 
NCCU tried to mount a rally in the seventh but managed one run in the frame and fell 8-7 in the first game of the doubleheader.
 
Game two saw the second pitcher’s duel of the weekend as NCCU’s Ruben Rios (Fortuna, Calif.) battled SSU’s Rex Davis with both teams combining for nine hits in the nine inning contest. 
 
The Eagles bats were shut down to the tune of just two hits in the game two defeat tying a season-low set back on March 2, against Campbell.  NCCU didn’t get its first hit until the fifth inning. 
 
Savannah State (10-14, 4-2 MEAC) plated the first run on the day on Peter Poole’s solo shot to right field, taking advantage of one of the few mistakes made by Rios.
 
The Tigers added two insurance runs in the final two innings to clinch the series two games to one.
 
Davis (3-2) went seven innings allowing only one hit, walking four batters, and striking out six in earning the win, while Rios pitched a complete game allowing just seven hits and three earned runs with four strikeouts in the loss.  McCrary was credited with a save as he pitched in the final inning of play.
 
NCCU (4-21, 3-6 MEAC) put runners in scoring position only three times in the series finale and left four runners stranded.
 
Williamson led the Eagles going 3-for-5 on the day with two RBI, while Smith was the only other Eagle to record multiple hits going 2-for-8.  As a team NCCU batted 8-for-54 (.148) at the plate in two games on Sunday.
 
The maroon and gray hit the road for a mid-week doubleheader against Longwood University on Wednesday, March 27 beginning at 4:00 p.m. at Charles Buddy Bolding Stadium in Farmville, Va.  Following that contest, the Eagles head back to the Sunshine state to usher in the month of April against Florida A&M in Tallahassee, Fla.
 
Stay up-to-date with North Carolina Central University Athletics by flying over to www.NCCUEaglePride.com, the official website of NCCU Athletics.