FORT MYERS, Fla. – Defiance College allowed two runs in the final frame of Monday's opener against New England and fell by a 7-5 margin, before putting seven runs on the board in the first frame of the nightcap and holding on for the 11-7 victory in Fort Myers, Florida.

DC battled back from a 5-0 deficit in the first game of the afternoon, striking for a pair of runs in the fourth inning and three more in the fifth. The Jackets could not complete the comeback however, as New England scored a pair in the top of the seventh and silenced the Defiance sticks in the bottom half for the 7-5 victory.

Bryn Lehman and Darin Waterman led the offensive attack with two hits each, while Chris Donese added a run-scoring double and Dave Riley drove home two with a double.

The Jackets rebounded in the night cap, using seven hits to push seven runs across in the top of the first and then withheld a New England rally to preserve the 11-7 victory.

Donese ignited the outburst with a bases-loaded double in the first and went on to collect four RBI, three hits, one double and a stolen base. Waterman also collected two more hits and Jonathan Murphy added two base hits.

Stephen Leskow pitched around seven hits and four walks through four innings to collect the win, while Ryan McLaughlin and Alex Schomaeker made the lead hold with three scoreless frames to close out the Defiance win.

DC (2-4) will continue its Florida trip on Tuesday with a pair of games against Minnesota-Morris. The first pitch is slated for 12:00 pm.