STEVENSON, Md. - The Hood College baseball team improved to 17-1, scoring the winning run in the seventh inning of both games at Stevenson in a Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth doubleheader. The Blazers claimed the opener 6-4, then won 13-12 in the nightcap. 

Cam Esposito had a two-run double to give Hood the lead in the first game and score an insurance run for Nate Luscombe, who pitched a complete game for the win. In game two, Jordan Patterson drew a walk-off walk to give himself the victory in relief. Esposito finished the doubleheader 5 for 9 with two doubles, a triple and five runs batted in.

HOOD 6, STEVENSON 4

• Hood trailed 4-2 heading into the seventh before scoring four runs to take the game. 
• Nathan Kessler, who went 4 for 4 in the game, doubled to lead off the top of the seventh. Drake Friend reached on an error and Patterson walked to load the bases. A groundout by Wayne Baldwin pulled Hood within 4-3 but was the second out of the inning. After a pitching change, Esposito greeted the reliever with a two-strike double down the line in right to knock in Patterson and Friend for a 5-4 lead. Esposito stole third and scored on a throwing error to give the Blazers a two-run cushion. 
• In the bottom of the inning, Luscombe allowed a leadoff single before forcing a 643 double play and a fly out to end the game. 
• The junior improved to 4-0 on the year. He struck out seven and allowed seven hits and two walks. 
• Hood jumped out a to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first. Daniel Shepherd singled, stole second, moved to third via a balk and scored on a wild pitch for the first run. Dylan Johnson added an RBI double to make it 2-0. 
• Kevin Murray drove in a run and scored in the third to tie the game. Jake Dimon added an RBI base hit in the fourth and a sacrifice fly in the sixth for a 4-2 lead. 
• Esposito went 2 for 5, doubled twice, drove in two and stole a pair of bases. Shepherd was 2 for 3 with two walks and a triple. Dylan Beck singled and drew two bases on balls. 
• Murray and Dimon had two hits apiece for the Mustangs. 
• Eric Prachniak took the loss in relief. 

HOOD 13, STEVENSON 12

• Patterson drew a bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the seventh to give the Blazers a 13-12 win. 
• Beck singled to lead off the inning, Shepherd walked and Friend was hit by a pitch to load the bases with one out. 
• Stevenson scored twice in the top of the inning to tie the game on RBI singles from Michael Rhodes and Murray. 
• Hood jumped ahead 3-0 in the second inning. Eric Turner drove in the first run of the rally with a single and later scored on an RBI triple by Esposito. 
• The inning was the beginning of six consecutive half innings with at least two runs. Stevenson's Brady Kessler capped a four-run third with a two-run homer to give the Mustangs a 4-3 lead. 
• In the bottom of the inning, Hood scored five times behind two-run singles by both Friend and Esposito for an 8-4 advantage. 
• The Blazers answered a two-run fourth by Stevenson by scoring four runs in the bottom half without getting a hit. Wild pitches allowed two of the runs to score, Patterson walked with the bases loaded and Nathan Kessler was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded for a 12-6 lead. 
• Nate Perkins drove in two with a single in the fifth as the Mustangs scored four runs to cut the Hood lead to 12-10. 
• Esposito went 3 for 4 with a triple and three runs batted in. Patterson reached base five times with two singles and three walks. Friend had two hits and Shepherd walked three times. 
• Hood drew 12 walks in the game. 
• Murray had three hits for Stevenson, while Perkins, Rhodes and Brady Kessler added two each. 
• The two teams combined to use 14 pitchers in the contest. 

Notes

• Hood improved to 4-1 in the MAC Commonwealth, while Stevenson dropped to 2-3 in the league and 10-8 overall. 

Up Next

The two teams wrap up the three-game series with a single game hosted by Hood on March 27 at 3:30 p.m.