Mason, Ohio – The West Liberty University baseball team dropped the first two games of their 4-game series against Malone on Friday afternoon, falling by scores of 9-1 and 14-9 at Prasco Park. After managing only three hits in the opening game the bats came to life in game two with nine hits, including four going for extra bases for the Hilltoppers.

QUICK DETAILS – GAME 1
Final Score: West Liberty 1, Malone 9
Team Records: West Liberty 0-1, Malone 1-2
Attendance: 44
Pitching Decision: Win: Josh Salinas (1-0), Ethan Conley (0-1)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED – GAME 1

• After a scoreless top of the first inning for West Liberty, Malone was the first to score in the opening game of the day as they collected four runs in the bottom half of the inning. The first run came with a single to center field, followed by a 2-RBI triple to center field, and a passed ball.
• The Hilltoppers reached base by walk once again in the top of the second before both teams went 3-up, 3-down in the bottom of the second and top of the third.
• In the bottom of the third the Pioneers put a runner in scoring position with a leadoff single up the middle and a stolen base, however the Hilltoppers forced a double play with a lineout and quick toss back to second base. The inning then came to a close as Will Balgo fielded the hit and tossed the ball over to Ethan Conley to get the out at first.
• WLU's first hit of the game came in the top of the fourth as Balgo hit a single down the left field line, however he would get left stranded as the inning ended with a groundout back to the pitcher.
• MU tacked on five more runs in the bottom of the fourth to extend their lead to 9-0. Their first run came as the batter reached safely on a fielder's choice with the bases loaded. The second run crossed the plate on a bases loaded walk, followed by a 2-RBI single to left field, and the final run scored with a single up the middle.
• Hunter White hit a 1-out single to center field, however he was left stranded with a pop out and a strikeout in the top of the fifth.
• An error and a walk gave Malone two base runners in the bottom of the fifth with no outs however the Hilltopper defense stepped up and shut down the inning with a pair of ground outs and a strikeout.
• West Liberty saw James Salvatori and Jacob Sherman reach base by way of walks to start the top of the sixth inning, but the momentum shifted with a strikeout and a double play to leave them stranded.
• Malone's final time up to bat resulted in one hit with a 2-out single to second base before the inning ended with a pop up to second.
• The Hilltoppers cracked the scoreboard in the top of the seventh as Trevor Thomas reached base with a leadoff walk before Kobe Hill brought him home with a triple to left center to make it a 9-1 ball game.

WEST LIBERTY STATISTICAL LEADERS – GAME 1
Kobe Hill: 1-for-3, 1 triple, 1 RBI
Jacob Sherman: 0-for-1, 2 walks
Joey Medkeff: 2.1 innings pitched, 3 hits allowed, 1 earned run allowed, 1 strikeout
 
QUICK DETAILS – GAME 2
Final Score: West Liberty 9, Malone 14
Team Records: West Liberty 0-2, Malone 2-2
Attendance: 51
Pitching Decision: Win: Michael Cook (1-0), Mason Bille (0-1)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED – GAME 2

• West Liberty was the first to score in game two as Jacob Sherman and Ryan Talbert reached base on walks and came around to score as Trevor Thomas knocked a double to left field, however he was called out at third as he tried to stretch the hit into a triple.
• Malone was only able to tally one hit in the bottom of the first while Brady Harmon notched a pair of strikeouts.
• The Hilltoppers went 3-up, 3-down in the top of the second before the Pioneers evened the game at two apiece with a 2-run homerun to right field in the bottom half of the frame.
• Sherman reached base for the second time in the game with a 2-out double to left field in the top of the third, but he was left stranded with a ground out to first base the next at-bat.
• The Pioneers took their first lead of the game as they started the inning with a leadoff double followed by an RBI single up the middle to drive home the run and make it a 3-2 ball game.
• Balgo singled to left field to lead off the fourth inning, however MU shut down the inning with three consecutive outs to leave him stranded.
• The Pioneers extended their lead to 6-2 in the bottom of the fourth as they scored two runs on a single up the middle and one on a double to left field.
• The WLU bats came to life in the top of the fifth inning as they scored five runs on six hits. James Salvatori first brought the Black & Gold within one run with a 3-run homerun to score Noah Mildren and Luke Marsh. Three at-bats later Balgo hit a solo blast over the left field fence to even the game at six. The inning ended as Kobe Hill singled to right field to score Thomas to give WLU the 7-6 lead, however he got caught trying to move to second as the runners advanced.
• Malone regained the lead with five runs of their own in the bottom of the fifth, scoring on a 2-RBI double to right field and a 3-RBI double up the middle.
• The scoring continued in the sixth inning as Salvatori and Mildren scored on an error after both reached base by walks. In the bottom half of the inning, the Pioneers opened the frame with back-to-back triples and a single to score two runs and later scored one run on a sacrifice fly to center field to bring the score to 14-9.
• The game came to a close as WLU went 3-up, 3-down in the top of the seventh.

WEST LIBERTY STATISTICAL LEADERS – GAME 2
Will Balgo: 2-for-4, 1 homerun, 1 RBI, 1 run scored
Trevor Thomas: 2-for-4, 1 double, 2 RBI, 1 run scored
James Salvatori: 1-for-3, 1 homerun, 1 walk, 3 RBI, 2 runs scored
Jacob Sherman: 1-for-3, 1 double, 1 walk, 1 run scored
 
UP NEXT
West Liberty and Malone will complete their series with games three and four tomorrow afternoon. The Hilltoppers and Pioneers are slated for 12 and 3 p.m. first pitch times at Prasco Park in Mason, Ohio.