Sophomore Chad Johns singled in the bottom of the seventh inning to plate the winning run as Eastern Mennonite University defeated Roanoke College 8-7 in game one of an Old Dominion Athletic Conference doubleheader on Sunday in Harrisonburg, Va. Roanoke won game two 11-5.

EMU (13-21, 5-13 ODAC) jumped out to an early lead in the first game thanks to a four-run first inning. Senior second baseman T.J. Frazier started the scoring by crossing home plate on a double steal. Junior center fielder Cole Thornton then scored when junior designated hitter Casey Armstrong reached on an error at third base. Freshman right fielder Curt Almarode then smacked an RBI double to left field and sophomore shortstop Shelton Stevens added an RBI single for a 4-1 EMU lead.

Roanoke (12-18, 8-10 ODAC) got one run back in the second when junior right fielder Brandon Coates smacked the first of his three home runs on the day. The Royals got the run back in the bottom half of the inning when Cole Thornton reached on a throwing error by the shortstop, allowing Frazier to score. EMU added another run in the third when Almarode hit his second RBI double of the game.

The Maroons put up three runs in the fifth thanks to a run-scoring single by junior third baseman Robby Hoopes followed by Coates' second home run of the day, a two-run shot. EMU padded its lead to 7-5 on an RBI double by Stevens in the bottom half of the fifth, but RC tied it with two runs in the sixth. Sophomore left fielder Justin Bradley hit an RBI single and freshman second baseman Brennan Thacker followed with a sacrifice fly.

The score remained tie until the bottom of the seventh. Senior left fielder Chad Thornton reached on a throwing error by Hoopes and advanced to second. He advanced to second on a ground out by Stevens to set up a runner on third base with two outs. Johns followed with a single up the middle for the game-winner.

Almarode (2-1) earned the victory in relief after allowing the Maroons to tie the game in the sixth. Junior Drew Cobb started for the Royals and allowed five runs on seven hits in five innings. Almarode and Stevens were each 2-for-4 with two RBIs. Chad Thornton was also 2-for-4 and scored three runs.

Junior Kirby Hamilton (0-1) took the loss for Roanoke, allowing the unearned run in the seventh. Freshman A.J. Haynes started and allowed seven runs in five innings but only three were earned. Coates was 3-for-4 at the plate with three RBIs and two runs scored. Sophomore first baseman Nathan Unroe and junior catcher Brandon Wilson had two hits each with Unroe driving in a run in the first.

In the second game, Roanoke jumped out to an early 5-0 lead thanks to a four-run third inning. EMU scored one in the bottom of the third but the Maroons then took charge with another four-run inning in the sixth, highlighted by Coates' third home run of the day, a three-run shot to left field. EMU scored two in the sixth and two in the ninth, but it was not enough as Roanoke won 11-5.

Junior Travis Andrews (3-3) started for Roanoke and allowed three runs, one earned, in eight innings. Senior shortstop Mike Eubank was 4-for-5 as part of a 19-hit attack for the Maroons. Coates and Thacker had three hits each while Unroe, Hoopes, and freshman designated hitter Justin Brown each had two hits.

Freshman Jeremy Morris (3-4) took the loss for the Royals after allowing nine runs on 15 hits in six innings. Frazier tossed three innings in relief, allowing two runs on four hits. He also went 2-for-4 at the plate with his third home run of the season. Johns was also 2-for-4 and smacked his third home run of the season in the ninth inning. Almarode was 2-for-3 while Chad Thornton went 2-for-4 with one run and one RBI in his final game at EMU.


Game One Box Score
Game Two Box Score