The Emory University baseball team split a pair of slugfest games Saturday afternoon against New York University at the Naimoli Complex on the campus of Fairleigh Dickinson University in Teaneck, New Jersey.
The two teams combined for 44 runs across the two games with the Eagles winning game one by a count of 14-11 before the Violets took the second contest by an 11-8 margin. Emory smacked six home runs over the course of the day including one in each game off the bats of junior Jake Lawson and senior Zach Wasserlauf.
Game 1: Emory 14, NYU 11
Both programs combined to score in all but five of the 18 combined half innings in the three-and-a-half marathon game one to start the afternoon.
Lawson launched a lead off home run to open the scoring binge but NYU punched right back with a three-spot in the home half of the inning. Not to be out done, the Eagles responded in short order pushing across three runs in the second with RBI-hits from freshmen Mario Borges and Ryan Roggin as well as fielder's choice from junior Zach Hanson that brought in a run.
The Violets continued their scoring run with five tallies and held an 8-5 lead through the end of five innings with an additional run from the Eagles coming from an Adrien Armstrong infield single to plate Roggin.
Trailing by three entering the sixth, Emory cashed in with a crooked number as five runs came across the plate including a three-run blast from freshman Dalton Needle and a solo shot Wasserlauf as the duo went back-to-back in the inning.
Borges, Needle and junior Jonathan Lang added to the Emory lead with run-producing plate appearances as the Eagles led 14-9 in the ninth. NYU put together a rally in the final inning with two runs reaching home but senior Reed Edwards was able to limit the damage as he earned his first career save.
In relief, freshman Owen Stone improved to 3-0 as he worked three innings out of the pen. Stone gave up two runs on five hits and struck out one.
Game 2: NYU 11, Emory 8
The second game of the afternoon was all Violets in the early stages as NYU struck early and often to lead 9-2 at the end of four innings with the only runs for the Eagles coming from a two-run home run by Wasserlauf in Emory's second inning.
Despite the early hole, the Eagles managed to put together another crooked inning in the fifth with six runs coming across the plate to slash the NYU lead to one at 9-8. Lawson and Armstrong started the inning with round trippers to bring the margin to within four. Junior Corey Goldstick picked up a sac fly before freshman Connor Tam collected a two-run single to make it a one-run ballgame.
The Violets bullpen however would keep the Emory bats in check for the remainder of the game and allowed the NYU offense to tack on two more in the fifth.
The Eagles were sent down in order for three innings following their fifth-inning outburst but made some noise in the ninth as Emory loaded the bases on walks from Hanson and Lang followed by a two-out single from Wasserlauf. Goldstick had a chance to tie it but grounded into a fielder's choice with the final out being made at third base.
Emory will look to win the series on Sunday when the weekend finale gets underway at 10:00 AM in Teaneck.
