The Shippensburg University baseball team split its Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division opening doubleheader on Friday, as the Raiders fell to Mansfield via walk-off in Game 1 before nabbing a 7-3 win in Game 2 in action held at Corning (N.Y.) Community College.
 
Junior Carter Arbuthnot went 4-for-7 at the plate. Arbuthnot hit four singles to drive in two runs and was the only Raider with multiple RBIs.
 
Graduate Justin Byler, senior Austin Baal, and junior Carter Hinds each had three hits between both games. Baal and Hinds each earned an RBI. 
 
Senior Andrew Chronister also had a multi-hit day, going 2-for-7 at the plate. Freshman Brady Harbach was 1-for-2 on the day with a walk and two hit-by-pitches.
 
Freshman Conner Barto tossed four innings on the mound, allowing just one hit while striking out four batters. Junior Jaxon Dalena tossed five innings on the mound, allowing one earned run on three hits with six strikeouts.
 
Game One: MANS 4, SHIP 3
 
Mansfield (5-6, 1-1 PSAC East) took Game 1 with a come-from-behind win. The Mounties tied the game with two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning before drawing a walk off walk in the bottom of the seventh.
 
Hinds and Arbuthnot each had two hits in the game, totaling for half of Shippensburg's (7-4, 1-1) eight hits in the game. Arbuthnot delivered two of the Raider RBIs and sophomore Mike Heckman brought in the third run.
 
Mansfield got things started in the bottom of the first with an RBI single by Cole Serfass. The Raiders went six-up, six-down to begin the day, but got on the board to tie the game in the third inning from Heckman's RBI single.
 
Baal led off the fourth inning with a single and junior Gio Calamia reached on an error to get a runner in scoring position. Both runners advanced on a groundout and Arbuthnot drove them both in with a single to centerfield to put the Raiders up 3-1.
 
A single and a triple by the Mounties opened the bottom of the sixth inning to make it a 3-2 ballgame. Another RBI single by Serfass tied the game at 3-3.
 
The Mounties got back to work in the bottom of the seventh, leading off with back-to-back singles. A hit by pitch loaded the bases and Serfass was up again to draw a walk for the walk-off win.
 
Serfass finished 2-for-2 at the plate with three RBIs and two walks for Mansfield.
 
Game Two: SHIP 7, MANS 3
 
The Raiders picked up a 7-3 win in Game 2. SU held a 5-0 lead before the Mounties cut it close with a three-run third inning, but two more runs in the seventh helped the Raiders comfortably close out the win.
 
Byler had all three of his hits in Game 2, going 3-for-4 at the plate with a run scored. Baal and Arbuthnot both had two hits in the game. Baal went 2-for-4 with an RBI and Arbuthnot was 2-for-4 with two runs scored.
 
Graduate Ryan Gleason started and went three innings, allowing three runs on four hits. Barto came in to relieve Gleason, finishing the final four innings while allowing just one hit to pick up his second collegiate win.
 
Heckman gave the Raiders their first baserunner in the top of the first, reaching base on a dropped third strike. Heckman stole second and Byler singled to get runners to second and third. Baal came up to the plate to single to bring in Heckman. Calamia drove in Byler with a sacrifice fly to left field for a quick 2-0 start.
 
Shippensburg got three more runs in the top of the third to extend its lead to 5-0. Baal and Calamia got things going with one-out singles to get two runners on. Arbuthnot came up with two outs, hitting a ball that gave the left fielder trouble to bring in both runs. Freshman Ty Sherman singled home Arbuthnot.
 
Mansfield got back in the game with a big three-run inning in the bottom half of the third. Two walks started off the inning and a single loaded the bases with one out. Jacob Houtz doubled to left-center field to bring in all three runs and make it a 5-3 game.
 
Barto came in to pitch the fourth, earning two quick outs. Barto allowed a single from the third batter he faced but would go on to retire 10 batters to close out the game.
 
Singles from Chronister and Arbuthnot in the seventh inning put some more pressure on for the Raiders. Chronister scored on a passed ball and Arbuthnot would come home on a sacrifice fly by Hinds to give SU a comfortable 7-3 lead. A three-up, three-down bottom of the seventh got the job done.
 
SU returns to Fairchild Field to host Mansfield for a doubleheader on Sunday beginning at 1 p.m.