SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – The Kutztown University baseball team made its first road trip of its 2026 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference East Division schedule on Saturday afternoon, dropping a pair of games to the Shippensburg Raiders, 9-0 and 13-3, at Fairchild Field.
The Golden Bears (7-10, 0-4 PSAC East) couldn't find any of that magic the team had in the early parts of its home doubleheader on Friday, and thanks to a few mid-game offensive surges, the Raiders (17-5, 4-0 PSAC East) took advantage and handily won the pair of games in front of its home crowd.
Game 1: Shippensburg 9, Kutztown 0
The Raiders took command bit by bit in the second and third innings, and thanks to the momentum staying in the home dugout the entire game, it was able to put the game away with multi-run innings in the fourth and fifth frames.
Kutztown, on the other hand, was limited to just four hits thanks to the pitching of Kaleb Maksimik (W, 3-1), who struck out five in a complete game, 98-pitch performance. His offense backed him up on the afternoon, making way for SU's second shutout of the season.
Starter
Kannon Zdimal (Morgantown, Pa./Twin Valley) (L, 3-2) was charged with seven runs (six earned) on ten hits while striking out six on 92 pitches. Aiden Myers settled things down in relief, allowing just two runs and striking out one while getting the final five outs of the game.
Shippensburg's winning line featured nine runs on ten hits, while Kutztown had four hits and a pair of errors in defeat.
Game 2: Shippensburg 13, Kutztown 3
Kutztown's offense found some solid ground as it got on the board against the Raiders, but it was once again some big fourth-and fifth-inning performances from the opposition that put the game out of reach for KU.
Shortstop
Nick Varda (Columbia, Md./Atholton) opened the scoring with an RBI single in the first inning for the Maroon and Gold, but Shippensburg would take control with a pair in the second frame. The Golden Bears saw
Preston Warne (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth) come home on an RBI double from
Drew Wheeler (Waxhaw, N.C./Marvin Ridge) in the fourth inning, but Shippensburg made some big offensive plays to blow the game open and secure the series sweep.
A quartet of pitchers took the hill for the Raiders, but the game was put away for starter Brenden Anderson (W, 2-1) to claim the victory after five innings of work. Kutztown starter
Eddie Frye (Lorton, Va./South County) (L, 1-2) took the loss in four innings of work, allowing eight runs (three earned) while striking out three. Relievers
Colten Mathias (Kutztown, Pa./Kutztown) and
Cain Lusic (San Pedro, Calif./San Pedro) took care of the remaining two innings that followed.
The winning line saw Shippensburg have 13 runs on 13 hits, while Kutztown scored three runs on six hits and committed two errors in a losing effort.
The Golden Bears will host the Wilmington Wildcats at North Campus Field on Tuesday, March 24, at 3 p.m. in a nine-inning, nonconference battle. It will resume PSAC competition against the Mansfield Mountaineers with a pair of doubleheaders on Friday, March 27 (1/3:30 p.m. at Mansfield) and Saturday, March 28 (1/3:30 p.m. at Kutztown).
