SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – The Shippensburg University baseball team got four home runs Wednesday from senior first baseman Jake Kennedy in a doubleheader against Chestnut Hill on a chilly afternoon from Fairchild Field.
 
Shippensburg (4-9-1) defeated Chestnut Hill (4-6-1), 19-6, in Game 1 of the twinbill. The two teams played to a 3-3 tie in Game 2, which was called due to darkness after seven innings.
 
Kennedy led the Raiders offensively, homering four times while driving in seven runs. The senior from Coatesville finished the day 5-for-8 with five runs scored. With his Game 1 performance, Kennedy became the third player in school history to hit three home runs in one game, joining Jamie Eichelberger (Apr. 5, 1997 vs. Millersville) and Tut Bailey (Mar. 13, 1993 vs. Lewis).
 
Sophomores Tommy Baggett and Drew Bene each went 3-for-5 on the afternoon. Baggett tripled and drove in three runs in the first game while Bene had one RBI while scoring four runs.
 
Junior Nick Spangler and sophomore Cash Gladfelter were the other two Raiders to record multi-hit days. Spangler drove in one and scored two runs; Gladfelter had three RBIs and scored three runs.
 
Senior Ryan McMillen reached base six times on the afternoon and scored three runs.
 
Shippensburg will begin conference play at 1 p.m. Friday when its hosts Bloomsburg in its Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division doubleheader from Fairchild Field.  
 
Game One
 
After Chestnut Hill scored two runs in the top of the first, the Raiders wasted no time in responding in the home half of the inning.
 
The Raiders loaded the bases with three consecutive walks to set the stage for Kennedy, who delivered with a towering shot over the left-field fence for a grand slam that gave SU a 4-2 lead.
 
Bene then followed with a single, eventually advancing to third on two wild pitches. Spangler then drew the fourth Raider walk of the inning to put runners on the corners with one out. Gladfelter then doubled to left center field to drive in Bene.
 
Baggett followed with a RBI groundout, scoring Spangler, to give the Raiders a 6-2 lead. SU added one more run in the bottom of the first to total seven runs on three hits.
 
Kennedy homered again in the fourth and fifth innings, the last being a majestic shot to center field, to accomplish the rare three-home run game.
 
Freshman Matt Ketterer recorded his first collegiate hit on a RBI double in the sixth that gave the Raiders a 13-4 advantage. SU finished with 19 runs on 14 hits to secure the Game 1 win.
 
Junior Gabe Mosser started for the Raiders and recorded the win, pitching two innings and striking out three. SU entered the game with the plan to use multiple pitchers, hence Mosser's victory despite just two innings of work. Among the relievers was junior Andy Crum, who also pitched two innings and allowed just one hit and fanned three Griffins.
 
Game Two
 
The Raiders got on the board first in Game 2 with a sacrifice fly from junior Dalton Hoiles that scored McMillen.
 
After Chestnut Hill tied the game in the second inning, Kennedy gave the Raiders the lead in the bottom of the third with his fourth home run on the day.
 
The Raiders entered the seventh with a 3-1 lead, but the Griffins tied the game with a pair of two-out unearned runs. SU was unable to tally the winning run in the bottom half of the inning, resulting in the tie after the umpires called the game due to darkness.
 
Junior Grant Hoover started Game 2 for SU and allowed just one unearned run in 4.1 innings, striking out six. Freshman Kyle Lysy got the final two outs of the fifth inning, and sophomore Michael Hope finished the game for SU, striking out three.