GREENVILLE, N.C. – Facing arguably its toughest test of the season, the Queens University of Charlotte baseball team suffered its first loss of the season over the weekend to Pitt Community College at Minges-Overton Stadium.
 
The Royals and Bulldogs played a doubleheader on Saturday afternoon, followed by a second doubleheader on Sunday on the Bulldogs home field. Pitt, a perennial JUCO power and 42-win team last season that claimed the NJCAA Division II Region X Championship, won the first three games of the four-game series before the Royals tallied a win in the series finale to avoid being swept.
 
Game One: Pitt CC 8, Queens 3
 
Both sides scored a run in the first inning in the opening game of the series as a four-run third inning put the Bulldogs ahead 5-1. Queens responded with two runs in the top of the fourth as the score remained 5-3 in favor of Pitt until three runs in the sixth sealed the win for the home team.
 
Junior Ryan Dudney was 2-for-4 with a solo home run in the contest, while freshman Greyson Haller turned in a 2-for-3 performance, including his first home run of the year to go along with two RBI.
 
Junior left-hander Jack Bergren (2-1) was hit with the loss after allowing five runs (four earned) on six hits. Freshman Christian Huggins tossed the final two innings in relief, giving up three runs on six hits with two strikeouts.
 
Game Two: Pitt CC 13, Queens 12
 
The Royals held an early 9-3 lead over the Bulldogs through three innings of play, highlighted by an eight-run third inning that saw freshmen Wes Boling and Anthony Orta each hit a grand slam for Queens.
 
Queens added a run in the fourth before Pitt closed the gap to a one-run deficit by scoring six runs in the bottom half of the inning. The Royals continued to put runs on the board, plating two runners in the fifth to extend its lead.
 
However, the Bulldogs brought three runs across the plate in the home half of the sixth to tie the score at 12-12 before winning in walk-off fashion with a lone run in the bottom of the seventh and final inning. Pitt hit three of its five totaled home runs in the game in the final two innings.
 
Boling and Orta were both 1-for-3 at the plate with four RBI each in Saturday's second game, while junior Chase Hager finished 2-for-5 with a double, a stolen base and two runs scored. Fellow junior CJ Hammonds also homered in the contest and scored two runs of his own.
 
Freshman Drew Meschede got the start for Queens but received a no decision despite allowing seven runs (four earned) on eight hits with two strikeouts.
 
Junior right-hander Max Friese allowed two runs on two hits with a strikeout and two walks across 1.1 innings of relief, while Boling (0-1) suffered the loss after giving up four runs on five hits with two strikeouts in 2.1 innings out of the bullpen.
 
Game Three: Pitt CC 8, Queens 7
 
The Bulldogs got on the board first in Sunday's opener, tallying four runs in the second inning. A scoreless third and fourth inning followed for the teams before Queens rallied for five runs in the fifth to take a one-run lead.
 
Pitt retook the lead with two runs in the bottom half of the fifth and added to its lead with a single run in the sixth. The Royals tied the score at 7-all with a two-run rally in the seventh inning, but the Bulldogs won with a walk-off for the second time in as many days.
 
Freshman Adam Hartle did not factor in the decision after getting his third start of the year. The right-hander allowed seven runs (five earned) on seven hits with six strikeouts in six innings of work. Fellow freshman Bryant Baucom (0-1) suffered the loss after giving up the final run of the game but did record a strikeout.
 
Dudney hit his second home run of the weekend as a part of a 2-for-4 performance and drove in two RBI. Orta and freshman Aaron Douglas were each 3-for-4 with a double in the game, while Hager hit his first home run of the season.
 
Game Four: Queens 15, Pitt CC 10
 
The series finale witnessed Queens erupt for 15 runs on 18 hits, including five doubles to go along with five stolen bases.
 
Queens led by a score of 4-2 through the game's first three innings of play as a five-run fourth inning put the Royals in front 9-2. However, the Bulldogs score seven runs in the bottom half of the fifth inning to tie the game at 9-all with just two innings left to play.
 
The Royals responded with six runs of their own in the sixth inning as Pitt brought home a run in the seventh before Boling shut down any hopes of a rally.
 
Douglas was 3-for-5 for the Royals' offense with two runs scored, an RBI and a stolen base, while sophomore Dominic Ford was also 3-for-5 with a double, a stolen base, two runs scored and three RBI. Boling and Hager also had three RBI each for the Royals as seven different Royals recorded at least two hits.
 
Junior Kollin Schrenk started on the mound for Queens and went 4.2 innings, allowing nine runs (eight earned) on six hits with four walks and four strikeouts.
 
Huggins (3-0), appearing in his second game of the weekend, picked up his third win of the year after allowing just two hits with one strikeout in 1.1 innings of relief. Boling also saw time on the mound for the second time in as many days, pitching the final inning of relief and allowing a solo home run.
 
The Royals remain on the road for their next contest, a single game against Piedmont International University, on Wednesday, February 28 in Mocksville, N.C. First pitch of the nine-inning game is scheduled for 1 p.m.