SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. – The Shippensburg University baseball team rallied from an early deficit, scoring four runs in the fifth inning and two in the seventh to defeat Shepherd, 7-6, in a nine-inning regional game on a sunny afternoon from Fairfax Field.
 
Shippensburg (7-11-1) got a pair of RBIs from junior Dalton Hoiles and senior Jake Kennedy on the day, as eight of the nine SU starters had at least one hit in the contest. Junior Nick Spangler reached base four times, drawing three walks in addition to a single.
 
Shepherd (9-11) took advantage of a couple errors in the early going to build a 4-0 lead. The Rams also hit a pair of solo home runs in the game, collecting seven hits as a team.
 
Freshman Jacob Menders threw well in his second collegiate start, allowing two earned runs on six hits in five innings of work. Junior Andy Crum got the win in relief, scattering a run on three hits while striking out two in 2.2 innings of work.
 
Freshman Kyle Lysy got the final out of the eighth inning, stranding a runner in scoring position, while sophomore Michael Hope pitched an unblemished ninth inning for his first collegiate save.
 
In SU's four-run fifth inning, the Raiders got RBIs on a squeeze bunt by sophomore Ty Painter and an infield hit by Hoiles before Kennedy muscled a two-out, two-run single to give SU a 5-4 lead.
 
The Raiders took the lead for good in the seventh when, with the bases loaded, senior Ryan McMillen hit a groundout to plate a run, and an errant throw on the play allowed a second run to score to make it 7-5.
 
Shippensburg is scheduled to return to action at 1 p.m. Friday vs. West Chester in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division doubleheader from Fairchild Field. Be sure to check shipraiders.com for any potential schedule changes in the event of inclement weather.