MEADVILLE, Pa. – The Allegheny baseball team hosted Grove City on Senior Day Saturday (April 11), falling to the Wolverines in a pair of close battles.
 
The Gators fell 9-6 in a back-and-forth first game. In game two, the Gators fought back to send the game into extra innings, but ultimately fell 13-11.
 
Before the games, the team honored their graduating players: Nick Banez (Edmonds, Wash./Meadowdale), Tommaso Floro (Sewickley Pa./Quaker Valley), Tai Hopkins (Meadville, Pa./Cathedral Prep), Cole Litman (Youngstown, Ohio/Cardinal Mooney), Douglas Malcolm (Austin, Texas/Austin) and Tyler Skaggs (Champion Heights, Ohio/Champion).
 
Game One - Grove City 9, Allegheny 6
 
Skaggs led off the game for the Gators with a double in the bottom of the first. Ryan Cochran (Pittsburgh, Pa./Deer Lakes) followed up with a bunt single that scored Skaggs on an overthrow to first, marking the first run of the game.
 
The Wolverines made up the run in the second as they tied the game at one. They scored a second run in the top of the third as they jumped ahead, 2-1.
 
Allegheny tied it back up in the third. Ty Eberhardt (Pittsburgh, Pa./Hopewell) drew a lead-off walk. Skaggs then hit his second double of the game to the left center gap, bringing Eberhardt around from first to tie the game at two.
 
After a scoreless fourth inning, Skaggs continued his day with a two-out solo home run, putting the Gators ahead 3-2. The home run marked his fourth of the season.
 
The Gators got in a jam in the sixth as the Wolverines put two runners on with no outs, but starting pitcher Ben Shields (Charleroi, Pa./Charleroi Area) navigated the Gators out of the situation unscathed.
 
In the bottom of the frame, Connor Kunkle (Moon Township, Pa./Moon Area) drew a one-out walk. A single by Michael Alspaugh (Venetia, Pa./Peters Township) put runners on the corners. Zach Miner (Venetia, Pa./Peters Township) followed up with a double down the left field line, bringing both runners in as their lead grew to 5-2.
 
The Wolverines battled back in the seventh, plating two runs to cut the Allegheny advantage to one run, 5-4. 
 
Allegheny made up one of the runs in the bottom of the inning when a Cochran double drove in Skaggs with two outs.
 
Grove City took the lead in the eighth. After loading the bases with one out, the Wolverines scored five runs on three walks, a hit-by-pitch and an infield single.
 
The Gators were unable to make up the three run deficit as they fell in game one 9-6.
 
Inside the Box

• Shields got the start on the mound. He went 6.0 innings, allowing two earned runs on five hits while striking out five.
• Skaggs had a home run and two doubles, driving in a pair of runs.
• Cochran also had a three hit day, producing a double and two infield singles while driving in a run. 
• Miner drove in two runs on a double. He also struck out two batters in relief.
• Alspaugh and Eberhardt also produced hits. 

Game Two - Grove City 13, Allegheny 11 (11 innings)
 
The Wolverines jumped out an early lead, scoring five runs in the first off five walks and two errors.
 
Cochran singled in the bottom of the frame and moved to third on a Noah Philson (Greenville, Pa./Greenville) single through the right side of the infield. Liam Irving (Olney, Md./Sherwood) knocked Cochran in on a deep sacrifice fly, cutting the deficit to 5-1.
 
In the second, Miner was hit by a pitch and moved around to third on a failed pickoff attempt. A groundout by Ivan Schuster (Chino Valley, Ariz./Prescott) brought him in for the Gators' second run. 
 
The Wolverines loaded the sixth and pushed three runs across to extend their lead to 8-2.
 
Philson made up a run in the bottom of the inning as he hit a solo home run to right center. It marked his second homer of the season.
 
Grove City added two runs in the seventh and one in the eighth as their lead reached 11-3.
 
The Gators rallied for seven runs in the eighth off three home runs. After Cochran doubled, Philson hit his second home run in as many at bats, his third of the year. Eli Bryant (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley), in a pinch hit opportunity, had his first career hit, a home run to left field, as the Gators cut the lead to 11-6 with back-to-back home runs. Johnny Hughes (Cheswick, Pa./Springdale) followed up with a pinch hit single before Banez was hit by a pitch, putting two runners back on. Schuster then drove Hughes in on a double for their fourth run of the inning. Kunkle hit the third home run of the inning, a three run shot to left field. It marked his first collegiate home run.
 
After keeping the Wolverines off the board in the ninth, the Gators had another chance in the bottom of the frame. On the first pitch, Bryant went deep for the second time, this time to dead center, to tie it up at 11. Allegheny was unable to push across a second run as the game went into extra innings.
 
After the Gators kept the Wolverines from scoring in the top of the tenth, Kunkle led-off the bottom of the inning with a single. He moved up to second on a wild pitch. However, they were unable to get a run across as the game went into an 11th inning.
 
In the top of the 11th, the Wolverines hit a two run home run to regain the lead, 13-11.
 
Allegheny was unable to produce a baserunner in the bottom of the inning as they ultimately fell in game two.
 
Inside the Box

• Philson hit two home runs as part of his three hits, driving in three runs.
• Bryant hit a pair of solo home runs.
• Cochran had three hits, including a double.
• Kunkle produced three hits with a home run and a double, bringing three runs in.
• Schuster drove in a pair of runs on a double.
• Alspaugh, Johnny Hughes (Cheswick, Pa./Springdale) and Wyatt Burchill (Saegertown, Pa./Saegertown) all singled.
• Hopkins pitched 2.1 innings of relief without allowing a hit or run.
• Brett McSparran (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny) and Evan Belkin (Austin, Texas/James Bowie) each struck out two in relief.
• Harrison Ashley (Jupiter, Fla./The Benjamin School) pitched two scoreless innings. 

News and Notes

• Allegheny is now 35-39 all-time against Grove City.
• Skaggs hit his ninth career home run.
• Bryant had his first career hit, a solo home run, as part of a two-home run game two.
• Philson and Bryant had the first multi-home run games for the Gators since 2024.
• The five home runs in game two were the most in a game since 2000 against Indiana (Pa.). 

Up Next
The Gators are back on the road Sunday (April 12) when they travel to Oberlin for a non-conference game.