GAME 1 HTML BOX SCORE | GAME 2 HTML BOX SCORE

BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - Junior Ashton Raines (Wallingford, Pa./Strath Haven) and freshman Nick Stoner (Elizabethtown, Pa./Elizabethtown) not only had their hair flowing, but, more importantly, had their arms flowing as the Bloomsburg University baseball team stayed hot on a cold, blustery, and damp Friday afternoon at Danny Litwhiler Field. The duo combined to allow only five hits while striking out ten as the Huskies blanked Shippensburg University in both games of the twinbill - 5-0 in game one and 8-0 in game two - to extend their winning streak to five consecutive games. Bloomsburg improved to 12-4 overall and 4-0 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division while the Raiders dropped to 9-10 overall and 0-3 in league play.

In the opener, Raines tossed his first collegiate complete-game shutout as he improved to 5-0 on the season while lowering his earned run average to 2.25. The righthander allowed only two hits - a two-out double in the first and a leadoff single in the seventh - while walking one and striking out three. He retired 14 consecutive batters from the last out of the first inning to a one-out walk in the sixth and needed only 92 pitches to take care of the Raiders to remain perfect on the season.

However, Raines was locked in a duel against Shippensburg's Zack Sims as the Raiders' righthander kept the visitors in the game. In fact, the Huskies did not register a baserunner against Sims until junior Ryan Shiffer (Toms River, N.J./Toms River South) led off the bottom of the fifth inning with a single to left center. Sophomore Andrew Holmes (Egg Harbor Township, N.J./Egg Harbor Township) followed with a four-pitch walk and then both runners advanced to second and third on a sacrifice bunt from freshman Ben Newbert (Bala Cynwyd, Pa./Harriton). Two batters later, sophomore Chad Cooperman (Allentown, Pa./Salisbury) broke the scoreless tie with a seeing-eye single back up the middle to plate both Shiffer and Holmes to give the Huskies a 2-0 lead.

That proved to be all Raines would need offensively, but, the Huskies added some insurance in the bottom of the sixth with three runs against Sims. Sophomore Cole Swiger (Maple Glen, Pa./Upper Dublin) and redshirt senior Austin Edgette (Exton, Pa./Downingtown East) led off the frame with back-to-back singles and then both advanced 90 feet on a sacrifice bunt from redshirt junior Shane Woelfel (Mahwah, N.J./Mahwah). Shiffer followed with a single to right to score both Swiger and Edgette, extending the lead to 4-0. After a wild pitch moved Shiffer into scoring position, Newbert laced a single to right to drive home the Huskies' catcher for the final run of the contest.

Sims dropped to 4-2 on the season for the Raiders as he allowed five runs on six hits in a complete-game effort. He walked one and struck out seven.

Shiffer led the Huskies, offensively, in the opener by going 2-for-4 with two runs scored and two runs driven in.

Game two proved to be another pitchers' duel early as Stoner went head-to-head with Shippensburg's Andy Crum. But, it was Stoner who emerged victorious as he won his second consecutive start to improve to 2-0 on the season while lowering his ERA to 1.48 on the year. Over five innings, Stoner allowed three hits while walking one and striking out seven.

Crum registered six of his first seven outs via strikeout before running into trouble in the third. Swiger and Edgette were the catalysts again as they reached on back-to-back one-out singles before advancing to second and third on a groundout off the bat of Shiffer. Woelfel came through in the clutch as he singled back up the middle on a 2-2 offering from Crum to plate both Swiger and Edgette for a 2-0 Bloomsburg advantage.

Stoner had to pitch around trouble in the top of the fifth as the Raiders put runners on the corners with one out. After a bunt moved the runner at first ahead 90 feet, Stoner was able to retire leadoff hitter, Nick Spangler, on a grounder to third to end the Shippensburg threat. The Huskies fed off the momentum in the bottom half of the frame as they scored three times to take a 5-0 advantage. Swiger and Edgette, again, started the rally as they led off the inning with back-to-back singles. Two batters later, Woelfel reached on an infield hit to load the bases with one out. Newbert extended the lead to 3-0 by reaching on a fielding error as Swiger crossed the dish. Then, freshman Kyle OFier (Pittston, Pa./Pittston Area) singled back up the middle to score both Edgette and Woelfel for a 5-0 cushion.

Senior Mike Warren (Garnerville, N.Y./St. Joseph Regional) came on in relief of Stoner in the sixth and retired the Raiders in order to bring the Huskies right back to the plate. And, Bloomsburg took advantage by scoring three more in the bottom of the sixth to break the game open. Swiger led off with a double to left and, two batters later, Shiffer drew a walk to put runners at first and second with one out. After both advanced on a wild pitch, Woelfel singled to score Swiger which extended the lead to 6-0. Newbert followed with an RBI single for a 7-0 advantage and then the Huskies' final run of the game scored when Holmes reached on a fielding error with two outs.

Warren slammed the door in the seventh by pitching a 1-2-3 inning with a pair of strikeouts. The righthander needed only 18 pitches over the final two innings to seal the victory. Formerly a starter, Warren has moved to the pen and in five relief appearances, he has not allowed a run and has given up only three hits while striking out 11 in ten innings.

Crum fell to 1-2 on the year for Shippensburg. He lasted 4.2 innings and allowed five runs (three earned) on eight hits while walking three and striking out ten.

The Huskies finished with 11 hits in game two - three each from Swiger and Woelfel and two each from Edgette and OFier. Swiger led the way with three runs scored while Woelfel drove in a game-high three runs in the victory.

Bloomsburg and Shippensburg will conclude the four-game series on Saturday afternoon with a doubleheader at Fairchild Field in Shippensburg. Start time of the twinbill is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.