By Ethan Cadeaux (@Ethan_301)
After falling behind early, the Terps were unable to complete the comeback, as they fell to Liberty University 5-4 on an Andrew Yacyk walk-off double, splitting the home-and-home midweek series and dropping them under .500 on the season.
The Terps (14-15) have now lost back-to-back games and three out of their last four.
Yacyk, a Hagerstown, Md. native, definitely left his mark on the team from his home state. In the two matchups, the junior finished a combined 8-11 with six runs batted in. In the first game on March 22, Yacyk turned in a career high of five hits. Tonight, he went 3-5 with 3 RBIs, including driving in the game-winning run.
The Terps got on the board early, as they plated the first run of the game in the top of the first. Freshman Marty Costes drove in Madison Nickens on an RBI groundout, giving Terps’ starting pitcher Tayler Stiles a lead before he had yet to throw a pitch.
The lead would not last long for the Terps. After a dropped fly ball in the third, Flames’ left fielder D.J. Artis singled in Payton Scarbrough to tie the game at one. The damage would not stop there. Two batters later, Yacyk would single to center and drive in his first run of the game to give the Flames a 2-1 lead.
The Flames (17-14) would plate a run in both the fifth and six innings, extending their lead to 4-1. Stiles would be pulled after six innings, allowing four runs – two that were unearned.
After trailing for most of the game, the Terps’ offense would come alive in the top of the eighth. The inning seemed to be another short one after Nick Dunn and Nick Cieri struck out following a Nickens walk, but Costes kept the inning alive with an infield single. Kevin Biondic, the next batter, walked to load the bases.
Nickens would score on a wild pitch, and shortstop Kevin Smith would smoke a 2-1 pitch to right field, scoring Costes and Biondic to tie the game at four.
After the Flames went down quietly in the bottom of the eighth, the Terps could not pull ahead in the top of the ninth. Artis started the bottom half with a four-pitch walk, which was immediately followed with a single by Will Shepherd. Then Yacyk came up, and laced a 1-2 pitch well past outfielders Anthony Papio and Costes into the left-center gap – ending the ballgame.
The Terps are back in action tomorrow evening, as they host James Madison University in a midweek game. First pitch is at 4 p.m. in Bob “Turtle” Smith Stadium.
