Game one of Friday’s double-header saw Mansfield’s Chris Zelko throw a complete game one hitter. Zelko had a no hitter going through the fifth inning, when Millersville’s freshman Carlos Medina finally got a single in the bottom of the sixth.

His hit was quickly erased though when senior Ryan McCormick hit into a double play on the next at bat. Zelko had no issues from there on out and retired the remaining Millersville batters to complete his shut out.

Mansfield was able to put up two runs in the fourth inning on a single by Chris Coleman and then a walk to Matt Hamilton. Glen Jenkins then hit a double, which was enough to score both of the runners, and put the game out of reach as they went on to win 2-0.

Millersville’s senior Forrest Mengle was given the loss in game one. Mengle also threw a complete game and only gave up four hits and two runs. However, the lack of offense from the Marauders and ace pitching from Mansfield was too much for Millersville.

In game two Millersville found themselves in another pitching duel, this time led by senior Ryan Stauffer who held off the Mountaineers, as Millersville was able to take game two with a score of 2-0.

Stauffer was able to give up just four hits and held the Mountaineers scoreless. Mansfield also had another impressive outing on the mound in game two, this time by Bryan Wilde. Wilde and Stauffer went into the sixth inning still in a scoreless game, but it was Millersville who was able to gain the upper hand.

Senior Corey Phelan led off the sixth for the Marauders with a single. Senior Derek Kline drew a walk in the next at bat and then senior Miles Gallagher grounded out to first. Phelan and Kline both moved into scoring position on the sacrifice by Gallagher. Sophomore Chris Edger kept the rally alive by driving in both runners on a single. The two runs would be all that Millersville would need as they took game two 2-0.

On Saturday the Marauders traveled to Mansfield to finish the four game series in another double-header. However, Millersville wasn’t able to find success on the road, which has been a problem for the team this season. Millersville is only 5-10 when not playing on their home diamond.

In game one on Saturday’s match up the Marauders kept the game close in the early innings. After giving up a run to Mansfield in the first inning, Millersville’s Gallagher hit a home run in the third to tie the game.

Gallagher would add four more RBIs in Millersville’s half of the fifth when he hit a grand slam bringing the score to 5-4. With his two home runs in the game, Gallagher drove in all five of Millersville’s runs.

Mansfield was able to bounce back the following inning where they put up four runs on two hits and a couple walks to take back the lead from the Marauders. Mansfield would also add five more insurance runs in the sixth inning, bringing the final score to 13-5 over Millersville.

Game two on Saturday held much of the same story for the Marauders as the team continued to struggle at the plate. However, Mansfield did not have the same issues that Millersville faced, as the Mountaineers put up all seven of their runs in the first inning.

Millersville would struggle throughout the game as they left eight men on base before finally scoring in the last inning. Mike DeSanto led off the inning with a single. Carlos Medina pitch ran for DeSanto and moved up to second on a grounder by McCormick. Medina then scored the first run of the game for Millersville on a double from Derek Kline. Kline then scored on a single from Miles Gallagher. Millersville fell in game two by a score of 7-2.

The Marauders are now 6-11 overall and 1-3 in conference play. The team will take on Bloomsburg on Friday and a home game on Saturday. On Sunday the team will be on the road again, taking on the University of California.

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Despite the disappointing ending to their season, senior Jason Blake made sure to end his career at Millersville with a bang. Blake scored a career high of 23 points in Saturday’s game. He also added seven rebounds to his game totals.

The Marauders got out to a slow start and faced a nine point deficit early in the game with 13:01 on the clock. Mansfield continued to rally against the struggling Marauders, stretching their lead to double digits with 7:27 remaining the in the first half.

Mansfield was able to hold on to their lead over Millersville for the remainder of the first half, even seeing a 15 point lead before Millersville’s Alen Ahmetovic made a lay-up with one second left in the first half, cutting the Mansfield lead to 13.

As the two teams got under way for the second half, Mansfield was able to keep a hold of their lead until senior Palmer McDurfee made a lay up with 14:22 left in the game, which started a 12-3 run for the Marauders. During the run Blake added a key three point shot to help bring the motivation in favor of the home team.

With 11:03 remaining on the clock Millersville was able to cut the Mansfield lead down to only three points. However, Mansfield was able to expand on their slim lead going up by as much as 15 points with only 3:55 left in the game.

Millersville made a strong run with only a few minutes left in their season, making another impressive run scoring eight unanswered points. The run cut their deficit down to seven with a score of 69-62 with 1:43 remaining in the game.

Although the Marauders made a valiant attempt to close the gap further, Mansfield proved too strong to stop. The Marauders came within five points with 52 seconds remaining in the game, on a lay-up by McDurfee, but Mansfield held on and finished the game up by eight points with a final score of 76-68.

Blake led the scoring with 23 points. Sophomore Mike Seibert also added 13 and Ahmetovic added 10 points.

With the win Mansfield was able grab the number one seed in the PSAC tournament in the Eastern Division. Millersville failed to make a playoff bid this season. In Fred Thompson’s 12 seasons as the head coach for Millersville, the team only missed the playoffs five times. This is also the second straight losing season for the Marauders.

The team has a lot of work in the off season, but the team will have some key players back next season including Seibert who has proved a vital member of the team this season.

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The Millersville men’s relay team had a great day. Senior Anthony Adamski, sophomores Keith Ogder and Jack Sacnlin, and freshman Chris Jackson ran the 4×400 meter relay with an impressive time of 3:22.75.

The men ran third in their heat, and although they finished 14 overall, the time was more than enough to set a new Millersville University record.

The in-house record was previously held by Adam Malloy, Wyatt Hall, Akil Stokes, and Nick Sperry and had been untouched since 2007. The current team outpaced the old time by more than two seconds.

On Feb. 13 the men’s track and field runners will participate in the Bucknell Winter Classic in Lewisburg, Pa. The meet is scheduled to last all day. Later the same week the team heads to Selinsgrove, Pa. for the Susquehanna Invitational.

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The Marauders kept the game modest, and never trailed by more than nine points. The first half saw many fouls for both teams, with the Marauders committing six within the first 10 minuets of play.

Despite the fouls, the team kept the game close even going ahead by six points on a three point shot by sophomore Mike Seibert with an assist by senior Palmer McDurfee with 9:15 left to play in the fist half. Millersville then saw their lead vanish as Mansfield not only closed the gap, but also went ahead on a three point shot at the buzzer by Chris Pender to end the first half.

The Mountaineers entered the second half with momentum that Millersville struggled to overcome. Mansfield extended their lead to 45-37 within the first five minuets of play. The game continued to go in favor of the home court Mountaineers as they pulled ahead for the biggest lead of the game with a score of 62-53 with only 3:22 left to play.

However, the Marauders forged ahead and held the Mountaineers scoreless for the next thee minutes as they closed the gap to 62-59. Scoring by senior Jason Blake and Seibert and sophomore Rob Wyley kept Millersville in the game until the end.

With only seconds remaining the Marauders were forced to foul the Mountaineers, but clutch free throw shooting by Mansfield’s Ryan Callahan put the game out of reach.

Saturday’s game followed a similar pattern the team has faced this season. In the last seven games the Marauders lost four games by less than eight points in each contest.

The team still has high hopes though. “I think we need to limit our mistakes and keep playing hard and playing defense,” Blake said.

This is the second straight loss for the Marauders and their fourth in the last five games. The team is now 7-12 overall and 2-4 in conference play. The Marauders are now tied for third place in the PSAC East division along with West Chester and Bloomsburg.

The team will have to make a strong finish to the season in order to overcome these losses if they want to make the playoffs. “Motivation must come from one another, we’re a family and we will continue to support and push one another and learn from our mistakes so we can be successful,” McDurfee said.

Manfield’s Yuseff Carr led the game with 18 points. Millersville’s Seibert led the team with 14 points.

Senior Alen Ahmetovic had a solid outing scoring nine points, nine rebounds, and a career high six assists. Blake also added 11 points in Saturday’s game.

The remainder of the Marauders schedule will be a challenge and the team will have to play in top form to overcome the recent losses. “I think our toughest challenge will be just to stay focused on the task ahead and limit our mistakes,” Blake said.

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