COLUMBIA, S.C. - CIU baseball took the field early Saturday morning to face off against Bluefield State University (W.V.) for the first time in program history. Bluefield is a part of NCAA DII and a member of the Central Intercollegiate Athletics Association. CIU took an early lead and held onto it for most of the game, but timely hitting from the Big Blue late in the game gave them the victory.
CIU 6 BSU 9: Bluefield threatened to score in the first two innings, but a double play up the middle in both innings would leave them scoreless. CIU scratched first in the bottom of the second after a single from Tanner Martinez and then back-to-back walks to Joshua Hernandez and Emmanuel Maldonado. The Rams extended their lead (4-0) after Shane Hammonds scored on a wild pitch. The Big Blue pushed two of their own across in the top of the fourth, and this was the last time either team scored until the seventh. Bluefield took the lead after four hits and an error and extended this lead 9-4 off of four more hits. CIU scratched two more off a double from Hammonds and a sac fly from Aaron Hood, but they could not overcome the deficit.
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Up Next: CIU hosts Morris College (S.C.) for a doubleheader on Wednesday, April 26, starting at 3 PM for their last regular season home games.
