Blough, Johnston, and Pfeffer Go 3-5 Against Rangers

HUNTINGDON, Pa.- The Juniata baseball team dropped the final game of their series with Drew University, 18-7, Saturday afternoon. 

The Rangers wasted no time, mashing a two-run double in the first before erupting for six more runs in the second as they also took advantage of an Eagle error to make it 8-0. 

Charlie Bakken's sacrifice fly to left scored Jacob Despot to get the Eagles on the board. 

Drew pushed their lead to nine with a single and another sacrifice fly in the top half of the third, before Juniata had another response.

Connor Blough led off with a single to left, stole second, and Jace Irvin was hit by a pitch. Jackson Cunnane crushed a triple to right center, and Ethan Pfeffer drove him in with a single to center. Ricky Scott reached on an infield single, stole second, and Bakken drove in both runners with a single to center to cut the deficit to four. 

Drew refuted with one run in the fourth and another five in the fifth as the Eagles faced a 10-run deficit. 

Blough knocked a double down the right field line to score Zach Johnston in the bottom half of the fifth. 

The defenses locked in from there, as the teams traded zeros, as the pitchers and defenses took over. Max Dupes induced an inning-ending double play in the sixth, Haydn Kephart tossed a 1-2-3 seventh, and Derek Brynildsen went 1-2, grazed a batter-3 in the eighth for Juniata. 

The Rangers added two more runs in the ninth to make it 18-7.

Johnston was 3-5, Pfeffer was 3-5 with an RBI and a run scored, while Blough was 3-5 with two doubles, an RBI, and a run scored. 

Juniata will travel to take on Susquehanna and finish the season series on Wednesday at 3:30.