WORCESTER, Mass.  – The Lafayette baseball team took a Sunday split in Sunday's crucial Patriot League doubleheader at Holy Cross, grabbing the first game, 9-6, before falling in game two, 10-5, at Fitton Field.
 
After each starting pitcher worked perfect innings in the first inning of game one, senior Spencer Rouse opened the scoring with a home run to right field to extend his on-base streak to 19 games for Lafayette (13-23, 8-8 PL). The Crusaders (14-26, 9-7 PL) pieced together two runs in the home half of the second to lead 2-1.
 
Sophomore Ethan Stern quickly answered with a two-run shot in the third to put the Leopards back in front, but Holy Cross used a home run of its own in the fourth to tie the game at three.
 
The two teams traded home runs again in the fifth as freshman Dylan Minghini had a solo shot in the top half before Holy Cross had a two-run homer in the home half.
 
Lafayette used a big sixth inning to regain the lead as senior Dan Leckie reached on an error to score classmate Richard Villa to tie the game. Minghini drove in two more with a base hit to center field and junior Trey Durrah capped off the sixth with a two-run double to center.
 
Sophomore JP Woodward worked 6.0-plus innings with a career-high 10 strikeouts to earn the win before freshman Frank Craska closed things out in the seventh.
 
Rouse was 2-for-3, scoring two runs for the Leopards and Minghini was 2-for-4 with three RBIs. Freshman Justin Johnson was 2-for-4 at the top of the Lafayette order, scoring twice in game one.
 
After the half hour break, Lafayette got out to another quick start as Leckie put the Leopards in front in the first inning with an infield hit to score Johnson. Holy Cross answered with a four-run bottom of the first and did not look back.
 
Austin Masel was 4-for-4 in game two with three RBIs to plague the Leopards. Sophomore Colin Harty was able to make some noise in the fourth with a home run to center field.
 
Rouse collected a hit in game two to extend the on-base streak to 20 games and Stern had a multi-hit second game to lead the Lafayette offense.
 
The rubber match of the series is set for Monday morning at 10 a.m. in an attempt to beat some afternoon showers.
 
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