EAST GREENSBORO – The North Carolina A&T dropped their first-ever Big South Conference baseball contest, 6-2, to the Longwood Lancers inside War Memorial Stadium on Friday night.
"I wasn't happy with the way we started that game," said A&T coach Ben Hall. "Just in our mentality, I think there was something off. I felt like we got ready the right way; we just didn't apply it at the start of the game.
We're not getting lead-off runners on base. We're trying to do everything with two outs, and that's tough. The Lancers (10-12, 3-1), who picked up their first road win of the season, plated two runs in the top of the first."
Longwood's Hayden Harris and Michael Peterson opened the game with back-to-back hits as Peterson hit a double to put runners on second and third. Hunter Gilliam struck out before Gregory Ryan grounded out to Aggie second baseman Alec Seaton, scoring Harris.
Eliot Dix singled to right center field to bring Peterson home and put the Lancers up 2-0.
A&T (9-12, 0-1) responded with a run of their own in the home half on an RBI single from sophomore designated hitter Camden Jackson.
Longwood negated that run, however, in the second inning when Harris doubled down the left field line, scoring Drayven Kowalski from third, making it 3-1.
The game ran scoreless over the next five innings before Longwood tacked on two more runs in the top of the eighth on a two-run shot from Dix, his first homer of the year.
A&T got one back in the home eighth on a pinch-hit RBI single from Shemar Dalton, scoring TJ Ash from third. The Lancers added one more in the visitor's ninth on an RBI single from Peterson to push their lead to 6-2.
A&T had plenty of chances to score as they out-hit the Lancers 12-10 but stranded 11 runners on base Friday. The Aggies got one on in the bottom half on junior Cameran Brantley's third walk drawn of the game but stranded him when the next two batters were retired.
"We had ample opportunities, but we're just not playing the game like we have the last couple of weeks. That showing tonight was obviously disappointing, and we have to get up and get it fixed and get it better for tomorrow."
Left-handed pitcher Daniel Carter (L, 2-3) started the game for the Aggies but gave up three runs on six hits in five innings pitched. He did strike out six.
