The Royals couldn't dig themselves out of an early hole at Bridgewater College Tuesday afternoon, falling 12-7 in ODAC action.  EMU's baseball men even out at 8-8 after the loss, including 2-4 in the ODAC.

Eastern Mennonite got two runners on in the top of the first, but it was host BC who got on the board first, scoring four times in the bottom of the frame.  The men loaded the bases with nobody out in the second, and eventually scored two runs on an RBI grounder combined with an error.  A double play ball ended the rally.

The Eagles pushed their lead to 8-2 with another four spot in the bottom of the second, combining three hits with three EMU errors.

BC snuck in an unearned run in the fourth, which the Royals got back in the fifth by walking the bases loaded followed up with a sacrifice fly from Patrick Love (Bedford, Va./Staunton River).   Four more hits turned into three more runs for the Eagles in the sixth, extending their lead to 12-3.

Some wild pitching and defense opened the door for the men in the eighth, and they scored three times to cut the deficit to 12-6.  The Royals rallied again in the top of the frame, getting an RBI single from Nic Love (Bedford, Va./Staunton River) before finally leaving two men on base in their final at-bat.

Both teams were a bit sloppy, as the two rivals combined for 12 walks, six errors, three hit batsmen and three wild pitches.  EMU drew nine of the walks.

Justin Rodriguez (Miramar, Fla./Monsignor Edward Pace) continued his red hot play by going 2-3 with two walks and two runs scored.  The shortstop now has multiple hits in six of the last seven games.  Joe Hall (Gladys, Va./Rustburg) was 1-4 with two walks, scoring twice and driving in another.  Ryan Hedrick (Bridgewater, Va./Turner Ashby) batted 1-3 with two walks, also driving in a run.

Starter Ryan Henschel (New Market, Va./Stonewall Jackson) lasted just one batter into the second inning, getting tagged for five runs and the loss.  Austin Marzullo (Shippensburg, Pa./Shippensburg) allowed seven runs in 4.1 innings, although only three were earned.  Ryan Tierney (Front Royal, Va./Warren County) threw scoreless ball over the final 2.2 frames.

The Royals head to No. 11 Shenandoah Wednesday afternoon, playing another single ODAC game at 4:00pm.