GREENSBORO, N.C. (BC Athletics) – Bridgewater baseball split the doubleheader against Guilford Sunday afternoon on the road, taking the first game 9-3 and then falling short in the second game, 6-5. The Eagles went 1-1 in the doubleheader in ODAC play for the 16th conference matchup of the season.

Game 1 Score: Bridgewater (BCE) 9, Guilford (GU) 3
Game 2 Score: Guilford (GU) 6, Bridgewater (BCE) 5
Records: BCE (21-10-1 OVR, 11-4-1 ODAC), GU (18-12 OVR, 6-10 ODAC)

How It Happened
Game 1
• Despite the early offensive burst from the Quakers, the Eagles turned things around fast in early innings to take command of the lead gradually separating themselves after each inning. Good contact at the plate allowed extra runners to get a jump on the base path to come around to score effectively. Pitching held strong and picked up in late innings to hold off the Quakers and eliminate any momentum shift.
• After the Quakers opened the score in the first inning off an RBI double, BCE dialed in a three-run frame in the second. Bryce Suters began the action with a hard hit to left center helping Ashton Smith and Trent Holland to come around to score. Cam Herron then hustled out an infield miscue knocking in Suters. The Eagles headed into the third inning ready to extend their lead with a 3-1 advantage.
• Suters came back up and ripped another hard lined ball to the left-center gap to bring home Zack Chadwell for the 4-1 lead. Cam Nuckols held down on the defensive end keeping runners out of dangerous scoring positions and went four extra innings with scoreless frames. Meanwhile, the Eagles blew open the score in the seventh with a five-run surge.
• Jake Harris drilled a ball out to left center to get the scoring going in the seventh, scoring in Suters. Nick Stavros soon boosted the lead with a three-run homer over the right-field fence. Chadwell continued the inning with an RBI double to bring home Lucas Bauer.
• With a 9-1 lead, the Eagles kept the Quakers out of reach the last two innings even during a two-run ninth inning, finishing with a 9-3 final score in game one of the twin bill.

Game 2
• Both teams traded offensive bursts throughout the game with early lead changes in the first few innings. As soon as the Quakers landed runs on the board, the Eagles came back swinging to claim an early lead; however, no lead was held sturdy enough until the very last out in the ninth.
• GU got the scoring going in the second inning off Evan Bert on the mound. The Quakers were able to get two runners around to score on a wild pitch and an RBI single for the early 2-0 lead. As the third inning ensued, the Eagles came ready to attack the zone. Trent Holland served one deep to left field for a bases clearing three-run double knocking in Chandler Valbak, Zack Chadwell, and Lucas Bauer. BCE claimed the lead after three full innings for a 3-2 advantage.
• The Quakers found space to attack, reclaiming the lead in the sixth inning after a pitching change to relieve Bert of five complete innings. GU got going with a two-run knock. Next inning, another run came across to score pushing the lead to 5-3.
• In the eighth inning, the Eagles put a halt to the opposition’s scoring burst as Nick Stavros livened up the game with an RBI single to score Bryce Suters. Zack Chadwell then helped the Eagles even the score up at five finding open territory in right field, bringing home Stavros. But GU was not done in its search for the winning scoring surge, and it came in the eighth inning on an RBI single, closing out the game at 6-5.

Game Notes
Game 1
• The Eagles got busy at the plate collecting 13 hits to Guilford’s seven, respectively.
• Plate discipline became a contributing factor to Bridgewater’s run success drawing 11 walks.
• Nick Stavros shined offensively, going 4-for-5 at the plate including a three-run long ball. Bryce Suters also posted a strong offensive display with three hits, three RBIs, and two scored runs.
• Cam Nuckols earned his fourth win of the season tossing six full innings with five strikeouts while only allowing one run on five hits.

Game 2
• Despite falling short in the ninth, the Eagles had the edge in total hits on the day with 12 hits.
• Trent Holland led Bridgewater offensively with three RBIs including two walks. Nick Stavros continued his hot streak from the first game going 3-for-3 with a scored run and an RBI. Stavros leads the team in season batting average boosting his performance at the plate to .430.
• Gary Tompkins broke his 3-0-win record after going 1.1 innings pitched on one run, one hit, one walk, and one strikeout.

Up Next
The Eagles are back in action on Wednesday, April 16 against EMU on the road.

— BC Athletics —