ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- The Wayne State University baseball team (9-3 overall) took one of two from Eckerd College (9-9 overall) on Friday at the Tritons' Turley Athletic Complex.  The Warriors will face Northwood on Saturday at 7:15 p.m. in Davenport, Fla. (Northeast Regional Park Field #2).

GAME ONE RECAP
Wayne State scored nine runs on 21 hits, the team's most since racking up 28 on May 1, 2021 at Purdue Northwest.  The Warriors haven't finished a game with that many hits in a non-conference game since 27 at Ohio Valley on March 2, 2020.

Trailing 2-0 after two innings, WSU brought in two runs in the third, five in the fourth, one in the sixth and another in the seventh.

Individually, all nine of Wayne State's batters recorded a hit including six with multiple base knocks.  Those six Warriors were Mason McGuire (4-for-5), Tony Hatzigeorgiou (4-for-5), CJ Maury (3-for-5), Drew Hill (3-for-5), Bennett Hitzelberger (2-for-4) and Logan Tobel (2-for-5).

On the mound, Griffin Kilander (3-0) finished six innings with three earned runs given up on six hits, two walks and 10 strikeouts (career high).  In one frame of relief, Will DeMasse surrendered two earned runs on four hits with no free passes and a punchout.

GAME TWO RECAP
Wayne State struck first in the nightcap as Maury scored on a wild pitch in the top of the first.

Eckerd answered with a run in the third and three more in the fourth to take a 4-1 lead.

In the top of the sixth, the Warriors cut the deficit to one when McGuire pushed in Nate Crossman with a sacrifice fly to right field and Hitzelberger doubled in Maury.

However, that would be all the scoring for WSU as the home team tacked on an insurance run in the bottom of that frame.

Through 5.1 innings pitched, Seth Marano (2-1) allowed five runs, four earned, on seven hits with two walks and four strikeouts.  Macio Miller handled the final inning and two-thirds in his first appearance as a Warrior without a walk and two k's.