Baseball | 3/9/2018 11:30:00 PM

Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 WILSON, N.C. – The Mercyhurst baseball suffered its first two losses of the season in Friday afternoon's doubleheader against West Virginia State at Fleming Field.

The Lakers drop to 6-2 overall with the pair of losses. WVSU improved to 6-3. 

Recaps to both games are listed below: 

Mercyhurst 2, West Virginia State 5
The Lakers' bats had a tough time finding their rhythm in their three-run loss to the Yellow Jackets in game one. 

Mercyhurst did not score until the top of the seventh inning, as WVSU pitcher Colby Gainer threw a complete game three-hitter. 

Lakers' starting pitcher Chris Vallimont allowed just two earned runs but the Yellow Jackets crossed home plate five times over his four innings of work. He struck out two while walking one. 

Josh Greggs had two scoreless innings of relief. 

Down 5-0 in the top of the seventh, Mercyhurst mustered two runs on Jared Kapturasky's RBI-single and a run scored on a WVSU error. Kapturasky's hit was one of three for Mercyhurst. 

Mercyhurst 4, West Virginia State 5
Mercyhurst managed eight hits and had a complete game pitching performance from Connor Ryan, but couldn't come out on top losing by one. 

Ryan allowed eight hits and four earned runs. He struck out six and walked one. 

WVSU scored once in the first and four times in the top of the sixth to take a 5-0 lead before the Lakers put runs on the board in the bottom of the inning. 

Alex O'Donnell drove in Jimmy Standohar on a double to begin the scoring. Matthew Schneider followed later in the inning with a bases-loaded single to drive in two more. Kapturasky scored Daniel Elliott on a fielder's choice. 

Mercyhurst ended up leaving the bases loaded to end the inning and never had a base runner after that. 

The Lakers play Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference East Division foe Kutztown in a non-conference game tomorrow at 1 p.m.