Box Score 1 | Box Score 2
LORAIN, Ohio -- An improbable seventh-inning comeback fell just short of providing a miraculous win in game two on Saturday, as Notre Dame split with Malone.

The Falcons won the opener, 8-4, snapping a four-game losing streak.  NDC then ceded a 10-1 lead to the Pioneers (21-15) in the nightcap before coming back with seven runs in the seventh inning.  Notre Dame had two runners on base when the game ended with Malone on top, 10-8.

“I'm happy with the way we played in game one,” said Interim Head Coach Len Barker.  “We were aggressive and we played good defense.  Then things got a little sloppy in the second game.  But the way we battled in the last inning was good to see.”

Game One
Senior right-hander Andrew Hyde was staked to an early 4-1 lead and would go five innings, allowing four runs (one earned) on six hits.  Malone halved NDC's lead with a solo run in the third, and the Pioneers knotted the score at 4-4 with a pair of runs in the top of the fifth.

The Falcon offense countered with four runs in the bottom of the fifth, and senior reliever Sean Harnish came on to get the final four outs of the game, preserving the 8-4 victory.  Harnish entered the game with the bases loaded in the sixth; he got the Falcons out of that jam with a line drive into the mitt of shortstop Jared Clovis and earned a save in pitching the final inning-and-a-third.

Game Two
Freshman left-hander Zach Gresch started the second game for Notre Dame.  Gresch lasted just 1-1/3 innings, giving up five runs on seven hits.  Malone sent 10 men to the plate in scoring five runs in the second inning.

NDC answered with a run in the bottom of the second, but the Falcon bullpen had trouble keeping the Pioneers offense off the board from that point on.  MU scored two in the third and then one run each in the fourth, fifth and seventh innings.

When Notre Dame came to bat in the bottom of the seventh, the Pioneers had a 10-1 lead.  But a resilient Falcon nine started chipping away at the MU bullpen, with eight straight batters reaching base.  NDC got an RBI double from Taylor Neville, an RBI single from Jesse Carriere and then a two-run single off the bat of Jon Koepf, who went 5-for-6 over the two games combined.

With the bases loaded and two out, Jesse Bartle came through with a two-run single, bringing the Falcons within two, at 10-8.  That's as far as Notre Dame's comeback would go, however.  After a walk to Neville, Malone reliever Nate Morrison got Pat Ross to fly to right, ending the rally and the game.

Koepf finished the day with four RBIs.  Mike Ferguson went 4-for-7 over the two games, raising his season batting average to .305 (29-for-95).  Shane DeFranco reached base five times on the day, collecting three walks and two base hits.

NDC went a combined 10-for-28 with runners in scoring position en route to scoring 16 runs, its most in a doubleheader since March 28.