The Lancaster Bible College Baseball team played their first home game of the season at the newly-expanded Charger Field on campus on Wednesday afternoon, defeating Notre Dame (Md.) 19-13 in United East play to inaugurate the field with a victory and clinch their spot in the United East postseason. The Chargers improve to 13-13 overall and 8-3 in conference while the Gators drop to 10-20 overall and 5-6 in conference.
 
How it Happened:
After the Gators put a run across to start the game, the Chargers hopped on the board right away as Dylan Witkowski (Sr.) hit a triple to right field, driving in a run before scoring on the next play to give LBC a 2-1 lead. Donavan Boles (So.) then hit a RBI-double to bring home another run, then later in the inning a two-run single by Alex Fox (Fr.) capped a five-run opening frame for the Chargers offense. The Gators' Tyler Holton hit the first home run on LBC's expanded field in the 2nd inning on a two-run shot, then Notre Dame (Md.) tied the game at 5-5 in the 3rd with two runs on three hits. The Chargers would not fall behind, however, as five more runs were plated in the bottom of the 3rd to retake the lead. Fox scored on a wild pitch and CJ Peterson (So.) came in on a balk, then Evan Saryeka (Sr.) lined a RBI-single to left and Tanner Smith (Sr.) had the Chargers' first home run on their expanded field, a two-run blast to right to make it 10-5 LBC after three. Notre Dame (Md.) got one back in the 4th, but LBC added three more as Witkowski laid down a bunt single to score one and Boles added two more RBI on a single through the right side. The Gators matched LBC with three in the 5th, then two more in the 7th to pull within two runs at 13-11. After loading the bases in the bottom frame, the Chargers began a six-run rally as Peterson drove in two on a single, Shane Stephan (Jr.) laid down a RBI-sac bunt, and Boles drove in another two before Sareyka took home with two outs to put LBC back up eight runs. Notre Dame (Md.) tacked on two in the 9th, but the Chargers closed out the victory at home and locked up their United East postseason berth.
 
By the Numbers:
- The Chargers had 19 runs on 18 hits and 15 RBI with one error, while the Gators had 13 runs on 18 hits and 12 RBI with four errors
- Donavan Boles led the Chargers with four hits on 4-5 with a walk and a career-high five RBI
- Alex Fox set a career-high with four hits and added two RBI and two runs scored
- CJ Peterson added three hits and two RBI
- Tanner Smith had two hits, two runs scored, and hit LBC's first home run on their expanded field in the 3rd inning
- On the mound, Kaiden Alday (Fr.) got the start for the Chargers as he allowed five earned runs on six hits and three walks, while Evan Sareyka (W, 3-1) earned the win, pitching 4.0 innings and allowing three earned runs on seven hits and three walks while striking out three
- The Gators were led by Hunter Beil on 4-6 from the plate with a team-high four RBI
 
Information to Know:
The Chargers are now 3-1 all-time against the Gators and have won their last three in a row against Notre Dame (Md.). The Chargers have locked up their postseason berth in the United East after today's win, sitting in third place in the conference at 8-3 with five games left to play in conference. The Chargers have scored 10+ runs in three straight conference games and have a team batting average of .367 in United East contests, the third-highest mark in the conference behind Keystone and Penn St. Harrisburg.
 
Up Next:
The Chargers celebrate Senior Day on Saturday, April 18 as they host Penn St. Brandywine for a home United East double-header beginning at 12:00 p.m.