• High Point dropped the nightcap of its Saturday doubleheader against NJIT by a score of 4-2 to drop to 1-1 on the season.
• Junior Austen Zente accounted for both of HPU’s runs, scoring the first and driving in the second.
• Freshman Trevor Holloway took the loss in his first collegiate start after allowing two earned runs on a hit and six walks in three innings of work.
HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point University baseball team split its doubleheader with NJIT on Saturday, Feb. 18, at Williard Stadium, falling in the nightcap by a score of 4-2.
“We gave them every reason to play tonight because we put guys on base for free and we had as many errors as we did hits,” head coach Craig Cozart said. “The bottom line is that as good as we were in game one today we were equally terrible in game two.”
Junior Austen Zente accounted for both Panther runs, finishing 1-3 with a walk, an RBI and a run scored in the contest. Redshirt-senior Tim Mansfield was the only HPU player with multiple hits as he finishd .
Freshman Trevor Holloway battled control problems in his first collegiate start and took the loss after allowing two earned runs on one hit and six walks in three innings of work. The freshman right-hander had three strikeouts in the contest.
Sean Lubreski got the win for NJIT after pitching 5-1/3 innings and allowing just one unearned run on four hits and two walks with four strikeouts. Bryan Haberstroh pitched the final three innings for the save, allowing one earned run on three walks.
The Panthers fell behind 3-0 as NJIT scored a run in the first on a fielder’s choice, one in the third on a sacrifice fly and one in the fifth on an RBI double.
High Point scored its first run of the game in the sixth as Mansfield hit a sacrifice fly to score Zente who reached with a single then advanced to third on a passed ball and a stolen base.
In the next half inning, NJIT loaded the bases with one out thanks to an error, a single and hit by pitch. Sophomore Matt Hodges worked out of the jam without allowing a run, first getting a comebacker to the mound for a force out at home then striking out Titans catcher Badaraco to keep HPU within striking distance.
The Panthers had a chance to tie the game or take the lead in the bottom of the same frame, loading the bases on two walks and a hit by pitch. Zente drew a two-out walk to score one run but all three runners were then stranded when junior Jordan Sergent hit a slow roller to first and was unable to beat the throw to the bag.
The visitors added an insurance run in the eighth on a two-out single to seal the game as High Point was retired in order in the eighth and ninth.