Box Score Facing Messiah for the first time since the 1981 season, the Lancaster Bible baseball team took advantage of some early Falcons errors and held off a late-inning surge to defeat Messiah, 8-6 at Charger Field. The win improves the Chargers to 12-17 this season, while the Falcons dropped to 15-17. 
 
Lancaster Bible scored four times in the first inning as they used three hits and two Messiah errors to jump out to an early lead. Seven straight batters reached base in the inning as Nate Long's two-RBI single capped the inning and put the Chargers up 4-0. The inning could have been even more productive, but the Chargers left the bases loaded. 
 
The Chargers tacked on two more runs in the second inning as another Messiah error, followed by a bases loaded walk made it 5-0 and Long's second RBI single of the day made it 6-0. Messiah cut the deficit in half in the top of the third, but Lancaster Bible scored twice in the bottom of the fourth to take an 8-3 lead. Once again it was a Messiah error that led to the two runs as Erich Carroll drove a ball that went through Falcons second baseman Zach Brubaker and scored to runs. 
 
The Falcons scored twice in the sixth to make it an 8-5 game and after a scoreless seventh and eighth innings, the Falcons scored once in the ninth and had the tying run on base and the go-ahead run at the plate, but Lancaster Bible freshman Justin Taylor came on to record the final two outs and earned his second save of the season. 
 
Lancaster Bible senior Matt Taliercio finished 3-for-5 with two runs scored as he improved his season batting average to .455. He has 46 hits this season and is just five short of the program record for most hits in a single season which is held by current Lancaster Bible Head Coach T.J. Horn. Long finished the day 2-for-3 with three runs batted in, while senior Kody Godsey was 2-for-5 with two runs scored and a run batted in. 
 
Junior Caleb Mayer was 1-of-2 with two runs scored and reached base in four of his five times at the plate as he drew two walks and was hit by a pitch in addition to his hit. Wade Zweizig relieved starter Nate Long in the fourth inning and Zweizig was quite good as he scattered seven hits over 5 1/3 innings and walked no one. Zweizig earned his fourth victory of the year which ties Micah McClay for the team lead.
 
The Chargers now must win just one of their final three games to be eligible for the NCCAA East Region Playoffs. The Chargers must finish with at least a .400 winning percentage to qualify for the playoffs and will face Cairn in the NCCAA East Region Final should they qualify. All of the other teams in the East Region, and that includes former NCCAA Division I one teams, are either not eligible or playing in another postseason, thus the Chargers and Highlanders will square off in the East Region Final. The two teams will play a three-game series as the tournament must be double elimination. 
 
Lancaster Bible heads to Cazenovia, N.Y. this weekend for a three-game set with the Wildcats. Friday's game is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m., while Saturday's doubleheader will begin at 12 p.m.