WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – The IUP baseball team was swept in a non-conference double-header at Winston-Salem State on Sunday, losing by scores of 2-1 and 3-1 at BB&T Ballpark.

With the loss, the Crimson Hawks fall to 3-6 overall. Meanwhile, the Rams improve to 8-11 on the season.

Winston-Salem State struck quickly in the bottom of the first in game one as Emilio Abreu hit a two-run homerun to take an early 2-0 lead. The score remained 2-0 until junior Dan Sepic (York, Pa./Central York) drove in a run with a fifth-inning single.

Sepic finished the game 2-for-3 with the lone IUP RBI. Junior righty Mike Klingensmith (Punxsutawney, Pa./Punxsutawney) suffered the loss as he tossed 6.0 innings while striking out six and yielding just two runs.

In game two, IUP jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the top of the second after an RBI ground out from senior Matt Eperesi (Cranberry Twp., Pa./Mars). Winston-Salem State tied the game in the bottom half of the second on a single from Michael McNamara. The Crimson Hawks put runners on first and second in the third before the Rams escaped the jam. Winston-Salem State then took the lead in the sixth on a double and an error to earn the win.

Cory Wheeler (Butler, Pa./Butler) was 1-for-2 with a walk. He was one of five IUP players to reach base via the free pass including Bo Putt (Indiana, Pa./Indiana Area), Scott Hess (Erie, Pa./Erie Cathedral Prep), Wes Carson (Woodstock, Md./Marriots Ridge) and Chris Eisel (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin). Senior righty Dillon Swanger (Salisbury, Md./James Bennett) took the loss after striking out two in 0.2 innings of work.

Up Next
The Crimson Hawks return to action next weekend, March 11-12, when they travel to East Stroudsburg for a pair of double-headers beginning at 1 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

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