Game 1
Rhode Island Lineup
White (CF), Cartnick (LF), Ulliana (C), Vargas (1B), Butler (DH), Coley (RF), Kopack (2B), Santos (3B), Salgado (SS), Diaz (P)
 
Army Lineup
Meade (CF), Dubrule (SS), Giachin (LF), Manesis (DH), Ruta (LF), Friedrick (1B), Berg (C), Simoes (2B), Walden (RF), Early (P)

Game 2
Rhode Island Lineup
White (CF), Cartnick (LF), Ulliana (C), Vargas (1B), Butler (DH), Coley (RF), Kopack (2B), Santos (3B), Salgado (SS), Diaz (P)
 
Army Lineup
Meade (CF), Dubrule (SS), Manesis (LF), Adams (1B), Smith (DH), Simoes (2B), Regine (3B), Ledoux (C), Walden (RF), Finan (P)
 
How it Happened
In a marathon day of baseball, Rhode Island and Army split a doubleheader Tuesday afternoon. Army (24-21) took the opener 8-1, and Rhody (21-21-1) earned the split by winning the second game, 9-5. The two seven-inning games took close to six hours to complete.

Game 1 – Army 8, Rhode Island 1
A steady supply of runs helped Army control the opener throughout. The Black Knights scored twice in the first inning, once each in the third and fourth, and twice in the fifth and seventh innings en route to the victory. The eight runs came on just five hits, as Army capitalized on five errors, seven walks and four hit batsmen.

Rhode Island got on the board in the bottom of the fifth inning when Mark Coley scored on a shallow pop up by Tino Salgado. However, the Rams managed just four hits in the game.

Game 2 – Rhode Island 9, Army 5
Rhode Island opened the game strong, scoring five runs on two hits in the bottom of the first. Austin White led off with a walk, and Josh Brodeur followed with a single. A botched pickoff attempt allowed both runners to advance. Billy Butler followed with a walk, but the fourth ball was a wild pitch that allowed White to score. A walk to Xavier Vargas loaded the bases, and Calvin McCall was hit by a pitch, forcing Brodeur in with the second run.

A Jordan Laske groundout brought Butler home, and Alex Ramirez delivered a two-out, two-run single to drive in Vargas and McCall for a 5-0 lead.

Army chipped away and eventually tied the score. The Black Knights scored three in the top of the second, then added single runs in the fourth and fifth frames.

Zach Fernandez came up with a big moment for the Rams in the top of the sixth. He entered a tie game with two outs and the bases loaded. With the count full against Nick Manesis, Fernandez dropped a breaking ball in for a strike to get Manesis looking and end the threat.

In the bottom of the sixth, Rhody manufactured a four-run rally on one hit. to put the game away. White was hit by a pitch, Brodeur walked and Butler was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Vargas walked to force White in, and McCall chopped a ball through the middle to drive.  

Inside the Box Score

• Army head coach Jim Foster returned to Bill Beck Field. Now in his fifth season with the Black Knights, he spent nine seasons as the head coach at Rhode Island.
• There were 11 hit batsmen combined in the two games.
• Alex Ramirez singled and drove in two runs in the second game.
• Xavier Vargas singled, walked three times and scored two runs on the day.
• Austin White walked, was hit by a pitch and scored two runs in Game Two.
• Calvin McCall singled, walked, scored a run and had three RBI.
• Max Mircovich had a single.  
• Josh Brodeur singled, walked and scored twice in the second game.
• Sonny Ulliana walked and singled in the first game.
• Mark Coley singled and scored one run.
• Alex Santos singled in the opener.
• Tino Salgado walked and had one run batted in during the opener.
• Zach Fernandez improved to 4-3 on the season, earning the win in the second game with 1.1 innings of scoreless relief. He struck out three of the five batters he faced.

Up Next
Rhode Island hosts Saint Joseph's for a four-game series at Bill Beck Field. The teams play a single game Friday, a doubleheader on Saturday and one more game Sunday.