KUTZTOWN, Pa. – The Kutztown University baseball team held a 3-1 lead entering the sixth inning of game one, but Lock Haven rallied with three runs in the sixth before going on to win game two 4-0 for a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) doubleheader sweep in the Maroon and Gold's home-opener on Monday afternoon at North Campus Field.
                                           
Joe Santospago (Doylestown, Pa./Archbishop Wood (Mercer County C.C.)) got KU (11-13, 2-6 PSAC) on the board in the first inning of game one after he followed Nick Lafferty (Croydon, Pa./Archbishop Wood)'s single with a RBI groundout to score Bo Rottet (Tamaqua, Pa./Tamaqua), who had led off the frame by getting hit by a pitch.
 
Lock Haven (17-5, 6-2) quickly came back with an unearned run to tie it at 1-1 in its next at-bat before starting pitchers Doug Conrad (West Chester, Pa./Downingtown West (Clarion)) and Brett Morrison proceeded to keep the game scoreless until the bottom of the fifth.
 
Zach Schram (Newtown, Pa./Council Rock North (Mercer County C.C.)) singled with one away but after a fielder's choice, Kutztown had just one runner on with two outs. Rottet kept the inning alive for Lafferty by working a nine-pitch walk, and the sophomore came through with his second hit of the day to break the tie. The Golden Bears were not done there though as Santospago stepped up next and delivered yet another RBI, singling through the left side to make the score 3-1.
 
Again Lock Haven had an answer though, beginning with a leadoff single in the top of the sixth. Following a fly out, back-to-back doubles evened the score at 3-3 before an RBI single gave the Bald Eagles their first lead of the afternoon.
 
Collin Bishop (Laurel Springs, N.J./Highland Regional) led off the bottom half of the frame with a single and would steal second and advance to third on a fly out, but LHU's closer came into get the final out before working a 1-2-3 seventh.
 
Lafferty finished game one 2-for-4 with the RBI, while Santospago drove in two and Rottet scored twice.   
 
Conrad surrendered three earned runs on eight hits in his six innings of work. He struck out three and did not walk a batter.
 
Ryan Clow (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks East) worked the scoreless seventh inning.
 
KU was able to work around two Lock Haven runners reaching in both the first and second innings of game two, but the Bald Eagles finally took advantage of putting runners on base in the third. Three straight hits, a double and two singles, brought home two runs, the latter of which was unearned because of a throwing error.
 
Schram registered Kutztown's lone hit of the nightcap when he led off the bottom of the third with a single, but a double play in the next at-bat quickly halted any potential momentum.
 
Instead, LHU put two more on the board in the top of the fourth after the first two hitters reached on a leadoff walk and a single. After being sacrificed to second and third, a single and sacrifice fly doubled the lead.
 
KU's best chance to get on the board came in the sixth when Justin Afflerbach (Allentown, Pa./Parkland) and Ryan Weller (Gilbertsville, Pa./Boyertown Area) were hit by pitches with one away. The Maroon and Gold could not take advantage though, as starter Avery Eddy retired the next two batters.
 
In addition to giving up just the one h it, Eddy struck out six and did not walk a hitter as he worked five 1-2-3 frames.
 
Kutztown starter Josh Houser (New Freedom, Pa./Susquehannock (Harford C.C.)) allowed three earned runs in four innings before Anthony DeVito (Philadelphia, Pa./Central (Mercer County C.C.)) worked the final three scoreless frames of relief.
 
KU takes a break from PSAC play tomorrow, April 4, when it travels to Saint Thomas Aquinas for a 3:30 p.m. first pitch.