CHESTER, Pa. - Hood College continued to play its Commonwealth Conference opposition close, but was unable to pull out either end of a doubleheader at Widener. The Blazers dropped game one 4-3, then fell 8-4 in the nightcap.

WIDENER 4, HOOD 3

Hood loaded the bases in the seventh and pulled within one, but Kyle McKelvy came on in relief and slammed the door shut for Widener.

Trailing 4-2, Tyler Cook (Selinsgrove, Pa. / Selinsgrove) led off the Blazers' seventh with a single. A one-out single by Cameron Esposito (Columbia, N.J. / Warren Hills Regional) was followed by a walk to Brooks Warrenfeltz (Middletown, Md. / Middletown), loading the bases. Josh Gall (Odenton, Md. / Arundel) drew a two-out walk to drive in a run and forced the Pride to lift starter Robert Barth. McKelvy entered and struck out the only batter he faced for his second save of the year. 

Esposito, Dylan Johnson (Newville, Pa. / Big Spring) and Cook had two hits apiece for the Blazers, while Warrenfeltz and Chris Shriver (Frederick, Md. / Gov. Thomas Johnson) doubled. Cook stole a base.

Hood jumped ahead 2-0 in the top of the second inning. John Cartagena (Brookfield, Conn. / Immaculate) singled to lead off the frame, then scored on Shriver's double. Cook later knocked in Shriver on a fielder's choice.

Single runs in the bottom of the second and third innings; and a two-run fourth put the Pride in front. Michael Rytelewski drove in a run in the second to cut Hood's lead in half and an error allowed Widener to tie the game the next inning. In the fourth, Michael Elfreth hit a two-run double to give his team the lead.

Ryan Atkinson (Hamburg, Pa. / Hamburg) allowed just two earned runs in a complete game loss. He struck out five and allowed six hits and four walks.

Barth picked up the win, pitching 6.2 innings. All three runs he allowed were earned and he gave up nine hits and two bases on balls.

Elfreth had three of Widener's six hits in the game, and walked once. 

WIDENER 8, HOOD 4

The Blazers took a 4-3 lead in the fifth, but Widener battled back with five runs in the final to innings to pick up the sweep.

Gall had three hits, including a double, to pace the Hood offense. Johnson added two more hits to his afternoon. 

A three-run first put the Blazers in an early hole, but Hood began to dig its way out the next inning. Drake Friend (Gladwyne, Pa. / Harriton) had an RBI single to score Shriver and Cook came home due to an error on the play for a 3-2 game in the second.

Neither team scored again until the Blazers claimed the lead in the fifth. Esposito singled to lead off the inning and chased starter Donovan Davis from the game. After Esposito stole second against reliever John Lafferty, Warrenfeltz singled to put runners on the corners. Johnson drove in a run with a groundout to tie the game, and Gall's single to right brought in Warrenfeltz for the go ahead score.

In the bottom of the fifth, Hood had two errors that helped three runs come home before the second out, putting the game out of reach. Blake Krisan (Mount Dora, Fla. / Mount Dora Bible) entered the game and settled things down, forcing a fly out and a ground out to end the inning. 

Andrew Catone (Jacksonville, Fla. / Stanton College Prep) allowed three earned runs in five innings on nine hits, two walks and two strikeouts. Michael Hernandez (Lancaster, Pa. / Hempfield) began the sixth before giving way to Krisan. 

Widener's third pitcher, Kevin Scisorek picked up the win by virtue of finishing the fifth with two-thirds of a scoreless inning just before the Pride retook the lead. McKelvy saved the nightcap, as well, tossing two innings of two-hit baseball.

Hood hosts No. 4 Frostburg State at Nymeo Field at Harry Grove Stadium on April 22.