GREENVILLE, N.C. – Elon University baseball took an early 3-0 lead but could not hold off No. 19 East Carolina as the Phoenix (7-10) fell 7-4 on Tuesday evening, March 10 at Clark-LeClair Stadium.
 
"I thought [Brian] Edgington's outing was outstanding," said head coach Mike Kennedy. "He gave us a chance to win and went out there and competed, made pitch after pitch. We didn't play particularly well behind him, and he kept bailing us out. That's a good sign moving on. We left a play on the field where we misplayed a ball out in the outfield, we misplayed a couple balls in the infield, but he just kept plugging and pitching himself out of trouble that we made for him. So, I was very proud of that effort. We had some timely hits to score some runs, but we just didn't finish. I think we were in a position to win that game and be competitive right down to the end. It never really got away from us, but we certainly left the door open and allowed them to take advantage of some crucial mistakes at the wrong time in the ball game."

AT THE PLATE
Adam Spurlin finished 2-for-4 at the plate and drove in two runs. Matt Oldham and Tyler Stanley both went 1-for-3 and scored a run, with Oldham adding a double. Joe Satterfield hit a solo home run to go 1-for-4 on the night, Alex Iadisernia batted 1-for-5 with an RBI, and J.P. Sponseller singled in his only at bat as a pinch hitter. 

ON THE MOUND
Kyle Greenler drops to 2-1 after getting tagged for four runs on six hits. The sophomore struck out a pair and did not issue a walk. Starter Brian Edgington tallied five strikeouts in 5.0 innings of work. The Hatboro, Pa. native surrendered one run on seven hits and one walk. Daniel Albrittain, Maxx Harpalani, and Liam Dabagian also came out of the pen.

THE RUNDOWN
The Phoenix struck first with three runs in the top of the second inning. After Oldham walked and Roberts was hit by a pitch, Stanley singled through the right side to load the bases with two outs. Spurlin then delivered a two-RBI hit to left, and Stanley scored from second on an Iadisernia hit to right.
 
ECU got a run back in the third. After Oldham threw out a runner trying to steal for the second out of the frame, back-to-back hits through the right side of the Elon defense placed runners on the corners. A double to the gap in left then plated one before the Phoenix got out of the inning on a ground out to second base. The Pirates (13-3) looked to add another tally in the fourth with a triple to center, but Edgington fanned a pair and induced a fly out to right to keep it a 3-1 lead.
 
Oldham looked to add some insurance with a leadoff ground-rule double in the sixth but was left stranded as ECU retired the next three batters. In the home half of the frame, a ground-rule double and a sacrifice bunt moved the leadoff man to third. He then scored on a single to second to close the gap, 3-2. A double down the left-field line and a single back up the middle then brought in two more runs as the hosts wrestled away control, 4-3. The Pirates then went up 5-3 with a solo home run to right in the bottom of the seventh.
 
Satterfield narrowed the gap 5-4 in the top of the eighth with a solo shot to right. However, ECU responded with two runs in bottom half of the eighth. After the lead batter drew a base on balls, the next man up reached in a fielding error by Harpalani. The Pirates then executed a sac bunt to move the runners up, and a single to center brought the pair home for the 7-4 advantage.

NOTES
-ECU trailed for the first time since Feb. 29 when the then-No. 17 Pirates fell to No. 13 Ole Miss, 2-1 at Clark-LeClair Stadium.
-The game marked Edgington's first start as a Phoenix.
-Stanley picked up his first hit of the season.
-Satterfield's home run was his first of the season.
-Elon falls to 31-53-1 in the all-time series.

UP NEXT
The Phoenix opens a seven-game homestand this weekend as Elon hosts Western Carolina for three games at Latham Park.