Seton Hill 7, Mercyhurst 2
Seton Hill 3, Mercyhurst 2 (9 inn.)

ERIE, Pa. – Mercyhurst dropped both ends of a doubleheader against Seton Hill on Saturday afternoon, falling 7-2 in the opener before being narrowly edged in extra innings, 3-2, in the nightcap. 

The loss is the Lakers third-straight, moving their record to 16-16 overall, while the Griffins improve to 24-11 on the year. 

Seton Hill's offense recorded 23 hits on the day while its pitching staff limited the Lakers to just 11.
The Griffins had a pair of hitters each collect five hits on the day, including catcher/designated hitter Pat Trettel (5-for-7, R, 2 RBI) and second baseman Dave McCarthy (5-for-8, 3R). 

Mercyhurst was led by senior Adam Gray, who went 2-for-7 with three RBI to increase his hitting streak to eight games. 

In the opener, the Lakers struck first for two runs thanks to a throwing error by the Griffins third baseman that plated Jonathan Keppler, who had been hit by a pitch to lead off the inning. Next, back-to-back singles by Craig Denman and Gray helped give the Lakers a 2-0 advantage and pushed across Bill Gerstenslager after he reached on the error. 

The two teams went through the a scoreless second before the Griffins used five hits to score five runs in the third and break the game open. Nick Erminio's double down to left field scored two Griffins while an RBI-double from Trettel and RBI-singles from Jared Littler and Tom Deangelis completed the scoring. 

In the fifth, the Lakers almost added a two-run homer by Trey Bennett but he was robbed by centefielder Josh Logan as he went up and through the left-centerfield fence for the out.

The Griffins would add two more runs off Lakers starter Gray, as Littler's sacrifice fly in the fifth and fielder choice in the seventh wrapped up his 1-for-3 game at the plate. 

Gray (3-2) went the distance for the Lakers, allowing seven earned runs on 10 hits while striking out four. His counterpart, Brian Warheit (4-4), allowed just two hits in seven innings of work. 

In the second half of the doubleheader, the Lakers used a clutch two-out, two-RBI single to right field from Gray that scored Justin Urschel and Adam Brentlinger to knot the game at 2-2. 

From there, the two teams went through a scoreless seventh and a scoreless eighth before the Griffins opened the ninth with a triple to centerfield by Patrick Kohl. The next batter, pinch-hitter Littler, recorded a sacrifice fly to deep left center for the go-ahead run. 

In the bottom of the ninth, the Lakers rallied to put runners on first and second with two outs behind singles by Denman and Gerstenslager. The next batter, Greg Turk, was thrown out at first base after a dropped third strike on a controversial call in which Turk seemed to have touched the bag before the ball arrived. 

Seton Hill reliever Jon Murphy (2-0) earned the win, working three scoreless innings in which he allowed just two hits. Christian Muth earned his third save of the season after retiring the game's final batter. 

Lakers starter Nick Gillung earned his second-straight no decision, allowing two runs on nine hits in seven innings while striking out six batters. 

SHU starter Rick Raraigh went 5 2/3 innings, giving up two runs on two hits and fanning five.
Next up for the Lakers is another twinbill against the Griffins on Sunday, April 11 at Seton Hill. First pitch is set for 1 p.m.