Lynchburg, VA - The Messiah baseball team opened their season with a pair of extremely close contests against the Lynchburg Hornets. Messiah dropped the first game of the double-dip 3-2, but rebounded to win an instant classic 16-14 in 15 innings.
 
On the day, Joseph Saufley (4-9, HR, 3B, 4 RBI, 2 BB), Adam Janney (4-11, 2B, 4 RBI), and Kyle Wickenheiser (2-5, 3B, HR) led the Falcons offensively.
 
Game one was a pitcher's dual from start to finish. Steven Ridings started on the bump for Messiah. Despite being on a pitch limit, Ridings got through five shutout innings allowing just three hits and one walk while racking up seven strikeouts. On the mound for Lynchburg was David Goulding. Goulding went the distance, pitching all seven innings while allowing just two runs (one earned) while striking out four.
 
Messiah picked up their first run of the season in the third inning. Jon Mullin advanced on an error to lead off the inning and two batters later Adam Janney knocked Mullin in with a single. In the fifth Messiah added another run. After a Mullin double and an Andrew Eyster single, Messiah covered the corners. John Griffitts grounded out to short, but brought home Mullin in the process and Messiah led 2-0.
 
In the bottom of the sixth, the Hornets would rally to take the lead. With Ridings removed due to his pitch count the Messiah bullpen allowed the first three batters to reach on two walks and an error to load the bases with no outs. A hit batter brought home the first run while a double play gave Messiah two outs but allowed a run to score. The next batter smacked an RBI single to give the Hornets a 3-2 lead.
 
In the final inning – the top of the seventh – Messiah rallied, getting runners to second and third, but failed to push in a run and the Hornets came away with the 3-2 victory. Freshman Josh Hayner pinch-hit to lead off the seventh for Messiah. After a quality at bat, Hayner singled for his first career knock.  With two outs, Eyster walked then stole second to put two in scoring position, but Griffitts just got out in front of an off-speed delivery and flew out to center to end the game.
 
In game two, Messiah started out in an early hole. The Hornets jumped all over Messiah starter Brandon Shirk for two runs in the first. Shirk struggled to get in an early rhythm, leaving a lot of fastballs up in the zone that the Hornets took advantage of.
 
After falling behind 2-0, Messiah countered with their largest inning of the day. The Falcons scored six runs on six hits to take a 6-2 lead. Kyle Wickenheiser led off the inning with his first career hit; a triple that short hopped the wall in left center. With the bases loaded and one away, Adam Janney singled up the middle to bring home two runs and give Messiah the lead. Joseph Saufley stepped to the plate and went the opposite way knocking a triple onto the warning track in left center. Saufley cruised into third after the knock, clearing the bases in the process. Colin Fry singled to bring home Saufley and complete the scoring in the inning for Messiah.
 
Now leading 6-2, Messiah allowed two runs in the bottom of the second on a single with one out. Shirk escaped further damage in the inning by getting the next two batters to strike out and fly out to end the inning.
 
After a scoreless third and fourth for both squads, Messiah jumped back on the scoreboard with a home run from Wickenheiser to nearly the same spot as he hits his triple two innings earlier. Wickenheiser's first career home run landed in the Lynchburg bullpen and gave Messiah a 7-4 lead.
 
The Hornets got back Wick's home run and another run in the bottom of the frame. Lynchburg used one hit and two Messiah errors to score two runs and pull to within one at 7-6. The Hornets weren't done just yet, in the very next inning Lynchburg used two doubles and two singles to set the table for three runs that would score on walks and hit by pitches. The Hornets scored a total of four runs in the inning to take a 10-7 lead.
 
Messiah got two runs back in the top of the seventh. The first of which came on a home run by Joseph Saufley to lead off the inning. Saufley took advantage of a mistake by Lynchburg, he drove a 3-1 fastball to straight-away center that landed halfway up the hitter's eye beyond the centerfield wall. Messiah's second run of the inning came in on an error by Lynchburg's first baseman, after Colin Fry doubled immediately after Saufley's homer.
 
Trailing 9-10 heading to the ninth, Saufley walked to lead off the inning. Austin Pletcher then singled to put runners on first and second. Two batters later, Josh Hayner hit a hard line drive to right field to bring home Saufley and tie the game at 10-10. Messiah escaped a jam in the bottom of the ninth and the game headed to extra innings.
 
After a quiet 10th and 11th innings, the Falcons scored four runs in the 12th to take a 14-10. Benjamin Sollenberger singled to drive in Josh Good for the first run of the inning. Messiah then scored two runs off a key error with runners on second and third. Adam Janney ended Messiah's scoring in the inning with an RBI single.
 
The Falcons' lead was short lived, Messiah was unable to slam the door in the bottom of the 12th. Lynchburg scored four runs of their own to tie the game at 14-14. The Falcons fell behind in counts and the Lynchburg hitters sat on fastballs and connected for key hits in the frame. A walk, fielder's choice, and two RBI singles brought in the four runs to continue the game.
 
After a quiet 13th and 14th, Messiah dented the scoreboard yet again. This time, Adam Janney drove a fastball down the right field line that could not get cut off by the right fielder. Janney ended up on second base with a double. Saufley then drove home Janney with a single to center and then wisely read the throw home and advanced to second with no outs. The next batter, Austin Pletcher, put together an excellent at bat. With two strikes he singled to left to bring home Saufley and give Messiah a 16-14 lead.
 
In the bottom of the 15th the Falcons were able to close the door and completed a one-two-three inning to finish off the 16-14 victory.
 
When the dust settled from the five hour, 15-inning, game, Messiah had used 27 of their 40 roster players to come away with a total team victory. Included in those 27 players were seven pitchers. Drew Betz (2.0 IP), John Griffitts (4.2 IP), and Zach Luman (2.0) each pitched at least two innings and did not allow a run. Zach Luman picked up the win in relief. He allowed just one hit while striking out two between the 14th and 15th innings.
 
A quick look through the record books does not reveal a Messiah baseball game that has lasted more than 14 innings in the 51-year history of the program, prior to Saturday's game.
 
Messiah will rest up after 22 innings of baseball on their opening day before traveling to Eastern Mennonite University for a single, nine-inning game on Wednesday beginning at 3:00 p.m. in Harrisonburg, Va.