PANTHERS HALT RU STREAK IN EXTRA INNINGS

BOX SCORE RADFORD, Va. - Radford's eight-game winning streak came to an end Friday night in extra innings at the hands of High Point as the Panthers scored six times in the 10th innings to defeat the Highlanders 11-5 at RU Baseball Stadium. The game was the opening contest of a three-game Big South series.

With the win, the Panthers ended their own four-game skid playing an extra-inning game for the third time in four games.

High Point (16-19, 4-6) scored six times on four hits in the extra stanza, but only one of the runs was earned.

Spencer Angelis led of the inning reaching on an error by Radford first baseman Alexander Lee. Ryan Retz chopped an infield single to the left side, and Adam Barry sacrificed and reached on a throwing error by pitcher Daniel Bridgeman. Angelis came in to score on the error and that opened the floodgates in the inning.

Brett Gemmell delivered an RBI single, and Dane McDermott came around to score on a balk by reliever Oliver Powers, who replaced Bridgeman with one out in the inning. Willie Medina walked with the bases loaded to drive in a run, and Stephen Wytiaz's sac fly plated another. Josh Spano drove in the final run of the inning with a single. Bridgeman (3-2) took the loss for the Highlanders going 1.1 innings and giving up six runs, one earned.

Radford (20-12, 7-3) wasted an opportunity to win the game in the bottom of the ninth when Blake Sipe led off the inning with a walk. Josh Reavis failed to bunt him to second, and Alexander Lee grounded into an inning-ending double play.

The Highlanders had rallied to tie the game in the eighth with two outs.

Shane Johnsonbaugh, who replaced injured Josh Gardiner in the offensive lineup, delivered a two-out single to bring home Brad Keen to tie the game at five. Gardiner, who injured an ankle Wednesday at Virginia, was unable to play, and Chris Coia moved from centerfield to second base in the defensive lineup, while Johnsonbaugh got the nod in center.

The rally by the Highlanders in the eighth spoiled a solid pitching performance by Panther starter, Jacob Newberry. He went 7.2 innings and struck out nine with only one walk. He threw 116 pitches and looked as though his efforts would be good enough for a victory when HPU took a 5-4 lead in the top of the eighth. Joe Goodman (2-0) could not keep the Highlanders off the board in relief in the eighth, but struck out five and earned the victory in 2.1 innings of scoreless relief. Newberry gave up five runs, four earned, and scattered nine RU hits.

Angelis doubled in the eighth and scored on a sac fly by Barry to give the Panthers the brief lead.

"We didn't play well enough to deserve a win tonight," Radford head coach Joe Raccuia said. "I tip my cap to their pitchers. When they needed big plays in crucial situations, they got them. We didn't do the things that we have to do to be successful. We made mistakes on defense and didn't execute."

High Point struck first with a run in the third. McDermott's two-out single was followed by an RBI triple by Medina for the first run of the game.

The Highlanders responded right away in their half of the third. Coia led off the inning with his second triple of the season and scored on a Sipe single. Lee singled with two outs in the inning and was aboard when Jeff Kemp lifted his ninth home run of the season over the right field wall to give RU a 3-1 advantage.

The Panthers cut the lead to 3-2 on an unearned run in the fourth when Cody Manzella hit an RBI double after Angelis reached on a Kemp error.

Again, however, the Highlanders answered. Ryan Burgess led off the RU fourth with a single and came around to score when Johnsonbaugh's sac bunt was thrown away at first base.

McDermott scored to cut the lead to 4-3 in the fifth when he doubled and eventually scored on a squeeze bunt by Devin Bujnovsky. The Panthers tied the game at four on yet another unearned run in the sixth. Retz singled and moved up 90 feet on a groundout, and then advanced to third on a passed ball. He eventually scored on a Manzella groundout setting up all the action in the later innings.

Radford was aiming to set the school record for consecutive wins, but will have to settle for tying the 1989 squad with eight straight.

The two teams will play the middle game of the series Saturday at 4:00.

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