GRANTHAM, Pa. – On Thursday afternoon, the Messiah University baseball team held off two late inning rallies to defeat the Blazers of Hood College twice.
In game one, the Blazers scored a run in the top of the third and the fifth to take a 2-0 lead. The Falcons though battled back with five runs in the bottom of the sixth to take a 5-2 lead. The Blazers though kept battling with two runs in the top of the seventh, but the Falcons stranded the tying run at third and Messiah earned the 5-4 win. David Martinez and Jarrett Gordon led the Falcons with two hits each. Carter Reid and Nick Moyer each added a hit and two RBIs. Jason Long earned the start, pitching 5.2 innings, allowing two runs on six hits, two walks, and seven strikeouts.
In game two, the Falcons opened the game strong with three runs in the bottom of the first on a three-run home run from Evan Wagaman. With the home run, Wagaman broke the Messiah program record with his 24th career home run. The Falcons extended their lead with a run in the third and three runs in the fifth to take a 7-0 lead. The Blazers though kept fighting with two runs in the top of the six to reduce the lead to five. The Falcons added an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth to push their lead back to six. The Blazers scored a run in the eighth and then in the ninth looked for a big rally to try to get back into the game. The Blazers scored two runs with one out, but Owen Hannevig got out of the jam for the Falcons earning the save. Drew Hurst, Evan Wagaman, and Matt Luchovick each led the Falcons with two hits. Wagaman and Hurst each hit home runs for the Falcons. Carter Reid added a hit and two RBIs. Daniel Knight earned the win, pitching six innings, allowing two runs on four hits, two walks, and three strikeouts.
 
Up next, the Falcons travel to Frederick, Md. to take on the Blazers of Hood College in game three of the season series on Friday, April 4, 2025.

Game One: Messiah 5, Hood 4
The Falcons and Blazers opened the game with two straight scoreless innings. The Blazers though struck first with a run in the top of the third on an RBI single to give the Blazers a 1-0 lead.
 
After a scoreless fourth, the Blazers added another run in the top of the fifth take a 2-0 lead.
 
After Drew Dellinger got out of a jam from the bullpen in the sixth, the Falcons looked to get on the board in the bottom of the sixth. Evan Wagaman led off the inning with a walk, and after a strikeout, David Martinez ripped a single to put runners on first and third with one out. Jarrett Gordon then hit an RBI single into center field to get the Falcons on the board. After a pop out and the runners advancing to second and third, Nick Moyer hit a two-RBI single up the middle to give the Falcons their first lead of the game. After a walk by Isaiah Parido and then a pair of stolen bases, Carter Reid hit a two-RBI single to give the Falcons a 5-2 lead headed into the final frame.
 
The Blazers though would not down without a fight, with a two-out triple to reduce the Falcons lead to 5-4. Noah Barrall though came out of pen to get the final out to earn his second save of the season.
 
Stats
David Martinez and Jarrett Gordon led the Falcons with two hits each. Carter Reid and Nick Moyer each added a hit and two RBIs. Jason Long earned the start, pitching 5.2 innings, allowing two runs on six hits, two walks, and seven strikeouts. Drew Dellinger earned the win pitching an inning out of the pen.
 
Game Two: Messiah 8, Hood 5
The Falcons looked to get off to a strong start in game two after a slow start in game one. After a ground out, Dylan Beard hit a double to center field. Drew Hurst walked, and then Evan Wagaman hit a three-run home run to center field to give the Falcons the 3-0 lead. The home run was Wagaman's 24th of his career, which broke Chris Heisey's career home run record.  
 
After a scoreless second and top of the third, the Falcons looked to build on their lead in the bottom of the third. After an out, Evan Wagaman walked and then Matt Luchovick singled to left to put runners on first and second with one out. After a Carter Reid walk, Jarrett Gordon hit an RBI single to left to push the Falcons lead to four.
 
After two more scoreless innings from Daniel Knight on the mound, the Falcons looked to continue to add to their lead in the bottom of the fifth. Drew Hurst led off the inning with a walk and Evan Wagaman and Matt Luchovick hit back-to-back singles to load the bases. Carter Reid then hit his second two-RBI single of the day to give the Falcons a 6-0 lead. After Nick Moyer reached on a hit by pitch to load the bases with two outs, Isaiah Parido worked an RBI walk to give the Falcons a 7-0 lead through five innings.
 
The Blazers though scored their first two runs of the game in the top of the sixth with a two-run home run to reduce the Falcons lead to 7-2.
 
The Falcons though got a run back in the bottom of the sixth with a solo home run from Drew Hurst to give them an 8-2 lead.
 
After a scoreless seventh, the Blazers looked to battle back in the final two innings. After the Blazers scored a run in the eighth to reduce the Falcons lead to five, they looked for a final rally in the top of the ninth. The Blazers had the bases loaded with the go-ahead run at the plate with one out, but Owen Hannevig got the final two outs to give the Falcons the 8-5 win.
 
Stats
Drew Hurst, Evan Wagaman, and Matt Luchovick each led the Falcons with two hits. Wagaman and Hurst each hit home runs for the Falcons. Carter Reid added a hit and two RBIs. Jarrett Gordon and Isiah Parido also got a hit and an RBI.  Daniel Knight earned the win, pitching six innings, allowing two runs on four hits, two walks, and three strikeouts. Trey Harper pitch two innings out of the pen allowing one unearned run, on one hit, two walks, and two strikeouts. Owen Hannevig earned his first career save, pitching one inning allowing a hit, a walk, and strikeout.
 
Next
The Falcons travel to Frederick, Md. to take on the Blazers of Hood College in game three of the season series on Friday, April 4, 2025.