Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 PORTSMOUTH, Ohio -- Unable to muster much offense in the opener or contain Shawnee State's offense in game two, Notre Dame was swept in both ends of a matinee twin bill on Wednesday.  (Gm-1 | Gm-2)

The Falcons fell, 5-2, in the first game and 15-10 in the second and have now dropped six of their last eight games.  Notre Dame (6-11-1) came out of a prolonged offensive slump in the second game, with multiple rallies late, but a strong performance by the Shawnee State (12-15) offense sealed the two-game sweep at Branch Rickey Park in Portsmouth, Ohio.

Prior to scoring 10 runs in the nightcap, NDC had struggled mightily with the bats over a stretch of seven games.  Over those seven, the Falcons scored just 19 runs.

Game One
Shawnee State struck first in the opener, getting two singles and a triple off starter Andrew Hyde and scoring a pair of runs in the first inning.  Hyde then settled in and pitched fairly well, allowing just three singles and a walk over innings two, three and four.

Notre Dame plated an unearned run off an error and an RBI single by freshman Jared Clovis in the top of the third.  But the host Bears countered with a lone run in the bottom of the inning to reclaim a two-run lead.

SSU scored two more in the fifth, and Notre Dame couldn't piece together any more offense against Bear pitching.

Hyde went 4-2/3 innings in a losing effort.  He allowed eight hits and five runs (four earned).  He walked two and fanned three.  Kevin Bedhun pitched 1-1/3 scoreless frames in relief. 

The Bears pieced together four pitchers in the game, with none going more than two innings.

Game Two
Shawnee and Notre Dame traded first-inning runs in the nightcap, but then the Bears scored three runs in their half of the second to take a 4-1 lead.  Danny Gesick had a two-run double off the right-field wall in leading SSU to its trio of runs in the second.

Junior Pat Ross scored on a wild pitch in the third to cut the SSU advantage to 4-2, but two Shane DeFranco errors led to an eventual three Shawnee runs in the bottom of the third. 

Trailing 7-2, the Falcons broke out of their offensive doldrums and tied the game with a five-run fifth.  A pair of walks, two singles and a three-run home run by Brad Morrison -- his first career round-tripper -- led to the outburst.  As quick as momentum shifted in NDC's favor in the top of the fifth, though, that's how fast it dissolved in the bottom half of the same stanza.  Gesick smacked a two-run homer as part of a four-run inning for the Bears, and Shawnee State emerged from the hitter's frame with an 11-7 lead.

Notre Dame battled back, plating three runs in a wild top of the sixth to close the gap to 11-10, but Gesick and the Bears again counterpunched.  The left-swinging outfielder slugged his seventh home run of the season as part of a four-run SSU sixth.  That quartet of runs gave the host nine a 15-10 lead heading into the seventh.

In that seventh, NDC was held scoreless as the Bears finalized the sweep.

Simon Davis started the second game and was saddled with the loss in a three-inning outing.  Davis allowed six runs (five earned) on nine hits (eight singles, one double).  He struck out three without issuing a walk.  The Notre Dame bullpen was tagged for nine runs over three innings.

Gesick went 4-for-5 with 11 total bases and six RBIs in game two.

NDC's top offensive performer on the day was Pat Ross, who reached base five times over the two games (two hits, walk, twice hit by a pitch).

SSU batted .444 (28-for-63) over the two contests.


NOTES FROM THE NEST …

NDC-SSU SERIES: The Falcons and Bears are former American Mideast Conference foes who've met several times in the past.  After Wednesday's action, SSU has a commanding 11-2 lead in 13 all-time meetings, and NDC is 1-6 all-time in Portsmouth.

STREAK SNAPPED: DeFranco had hit safely in six straight games heading into Wednesday's twin bill at Branch Rickey Park. DeFranco hit safely in game one (2-for-3), but he went 0-for-2 with a pair of walks in the nightcap, snapping the streak.  His seven-game stretch marks the longest hitting streak for any Falcon batter this season.  The Gahanna, Ohio, native has eight multi-hit games this season and is batting .400 (22-for-55) with three doubles and eight RBIs.

RUNNING BEAR: Shawnee State swiped six bases in seven attempts on Wednesday.  Prior to that, Notre Dame had yielded only 15 stolen bases in 16 games.

ON DECK: Notre Dame will play a doubleheader against east-side neighbor John Carroll on Saturday. The games will be at Pipeyard Stadium in Lorain, Ohio (noon start time).  JCU is 4-6 on the season.