BRIDGEPORT, W.Va. – The Fairmont State baseball team split the final two games of the series versus West Liberty on Saturday (April 29) at the Bridge Sports Complex in Bridgeport, W.Va.
 
Game One – Fairmont State 8, West Liberty 6
After the Hilltoppers scored two in the first, Alex Tennant grounded out to shortstop to score Connor Bailey for the first Fairmont State run. WLU added four runs in the second inning with two outs and led 6-1 after four innings. Zane Loveday stranded two baserunners in the top of the fifth inning and kept the deficit to five.
 
The Falcons' offense rattled off four runs in the bottom of the fifth. Ryan Goff blasted his third home run of the season and scored Bailey to cut the WLU lead in half. Alex Perez roped an RBI base hit through the left side and the Falcons scored another run on a wild pitch to pull within one. With two outs in the sixth Tennant singled home Bailey to even the game at six. The Falcons took the lead on a wild pitch and Canterbury added a run on an RBI base hit that scored Tennant. Ben Taylor pitched a 1-2-3 seventh inning and picked up his third save of the season in the game one win.
 
Bailey, Goff, Tennant and Perez all had two hits each and the Falcons finished with 10 hits in the first game. Gordon Swiger struck out five hitters and Loveday punched out three.
 
Game Two – West Liberty 7, Fairmont State 4
Canterbury knocked in a run on an RBI groundout in the first inning to tie the score at 1-1. After WLU retook the lead in the second inning, Isaac Miller knotted the game at two on a sacrifice fly and Bailey put the Falcons ahead on a two-out RBI base hit through the left side. Noah Armstrong delivered a clutch two-out triple that scored Tennant and the Falcons led 4-2 after three.
 
The Hilltoppers scored one in the sixth inning to trail one run heading into the seventh. With one out in the seventh inning, five straight WLU hitters reached base and the visitors rallied with four runs in the inning and led 7-4. Fairmont State was retired in order in the bottom of the seventh and WLU took the series after winning the fourth game, 7-4.
 
Jacob Young turned in a quality start on the mound after throwing 6.0 innings and giving up three earned runs to go along with six strikeouts. Bailey and Miller both had a pair of hits and an RBI while Armstrong and Canterbury also contributed RBIs.
 
Up Next
Fairmont State baseball will celebrate Senior Day on Friday (May 5) in the final home doubleheader of the regular season versus Frostburg State. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m.