The Middlebury baseball team battled back from an early six-run deficit against Bard (4-3) on Tuesday afternoon at Honey Field, but eventually fell by a 6-4 score. The Panthers (2-1) open their spring trip to Florida on Saturday, playing a doubleheader against Muhlenberg with the first pitch scheduled for 10:00 a.m.
The Raptors grabbed the early lead with four runs on five hits in the bottom of the second inning, highlighted by a two-run triple down the right-field line by Alex Luscher to plate the third and fourth runs.
Bard tacked on a pair of unearned runs in the next inning as Jake Stacey doubled down the right-field line and scored on a fielder's choice with the bases loaded. The Raptors made it 6-0 when Spencer Checkoway singled to left, driving home Jared Toby who had walked.
Mitchell Schroeder doubled off the wall in left center to leadoff Middlebury's fourth inning and moved to third on a wild pitch.
Sawyer Duarte drew a walk, stole second and both Panthers touched home plate on a single through the right side off the bat of
Alec Ritch.
Middlebury cut into the deficit in the fifth with four-consecutive hits to start the inning. Back-to-back doubles from Schroeder and
Zip Malley made it 6-3, followed by an infield base hit by
Beau Root. Duarte drove home Malley with a two-base hit over the right fielder's head to make it 6-4. Bard pitcher Aidan Risse induced an inning-ending double play and worked out of the jam.
Middlebury looked to get a rally going in the eighth with a one-out single by Root, but Risse wriggled off the hook with another double play from the defense behind him. Raptor closer Murphy Foss struck the Panthers out in order in the ninth to secure the 6-4 win.
Root went 3-4 at the plate to pace the Middlebury offense. Schroeder was 2-4 with two doubles and scored twice, while Ritch had a pair of hits in four at-bats with two RBI.
On the mound,
Henry Gustavson (0-1) took the loss in his season debut for the visitors.
Jackson Atwood gave up two unearned runs and struck out three over two frames, while
Charlie Kutz had four strikeouts in two innings of work.
Cole Crider pitched the seventh, while
George Goldstein struck out all three Raptors he faced in the eighth.
Bard's Checkoway, Justin Fiume and Michael Hannan each went 2-4 with a run scored, while Jordan Myers (2-4) also tallied a pair of hits including a double. Checkoway and Luscher both finished with two RBI. Risse picked up the win for the Raptors, tossing four innings while allowing two runs on six hits. Foss earned his second save of the spring.
