The Lancaster Bible College baseball team played their first games of their Spring Break trip as part of The Ripken Experience in Myrtle Beach, S.C. on Monday, losing both games of a double-header to Geneva College (Pa.). The Chargers fall to 2-3 overall to begin 2023, while the Golden Tornadoes improve to 2-2 overall.
 
Game 1: Geneva (Pa.) Wins 5-1 (7 Innings)

How it Happened: Both pitchers started strong, with the Golden Tornadoes' Caleb Graft and the Chargers' Dylan Witkowski holding each team scoreless through the first two innings. Geneva (Pa.) got the scoring started in the bottom of the third with a couple of base hits that help them grab a 3-0 lead, but the Chargers had a response in the next frame. Brian Coburn got the inning started with a single, then stole a pair of bases before scoring on a steal attempt from Harrison Hobdy, cutting the lead to 3-1.
 
The GT's Graft continued to deal through 4.2 innings and allowed just one hit, and Geneva (Pa.) added two more runs before closing out LBC in the top of the seventh to secure the 5-1 win.

By the Numbers
Batting

• Brian Coburn led the Chargers, going 1-3 with a single and a run scored, also swiping two bases.
• Sophomore Harrison Hobdy batted 1-2 with a single and a walk.
• Lancaster Bible drew a total of five walks for the game and stole four bases.

Pitching

• Dylan Witkowski got the start for the Chargers, pitching five full innings and allowing three runs on seven hits, striking out two.
• Jacob Mills threw the final inning, giving up one hit with two unearned runs scoring.

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Game 2: Geneva (Pa.) Wins 6-2 (7 Innings)

How it Happened: Geneva (Pa.) got on the board in the first inning with a sacrifice fly, but LBC tied it up in the bottom frame when Harrison Hobdy knocked an RBI single to make the score 1-1. The Chargers grabbed their first lead in Myrtle Beach in the third inning when junior Brian Coburn connected on a single that brought Blake Greenly home to put LBC up 2-1. The Golden Tornadoes quickly tied the game at two with in the fourth, then scored three runs in the fifth inning to grab a 5-2 advantage. The Chargers managed a few more hits throughout the game, but could not score again and lost 6-2 after seven innings.
 
By the Numbers
Batting

• Harrison Hobdy notched his first multi-hit game of the season, batting 2-3 with one RBI.
• Brian Coburn had one hit and drove in a run.
• Freshmen Dylan Witkowski and Jack Nance each had a base hit, with Nance's being the first of his career.
• The Chargers drew a season-high seven walks.

Pitching

• Freshman Evan Sareyka started on the mound, throwing 4.2 innings and allowing five runs on six hits, walking five batters and recorded one strikeout.
• Matthew Shaeffer came on in relief, pitching 2.1 innings and giving up just one run on two hits.

 
Up Next: The baseball team will continue play in Myrtle Beach, S.C. as they take on Eastern Nazarene College in a double-header on Wednesday, March 8^th beginning at 10:00 a.m.