A late inning rally Friday night was not enough for the Eagles to overcome the Rio Grande Red Storm at Cecil Zweifel Field.

The Eagle's bats were largely kept in check by Rio Grande pitcher Zach Harvey who recorded six strikeouts and allowed only three hits in seven complete innings. Harvey proved himself as one of the most dominant pitchers in the River States Conference and has now brought his win total to nine for the year which also leads the conference.

Although Harvey proved the victor during last night's contest, Asbury pitcher Will MacDonald battled hard on the mound for the Eagles all game long. After surrendering a three-run home run during the first inning, MacDonald settled into a rhythm and eventual struck out eight Red Storm hitters and completed seven innings.

Offensively, the Eagles collected five hits during the game but could not string anything together for a big inning until the bottom of the ninth. Asbury would score two runs led by a lead-off single by CJ Compton. Compton and Colton Back would eventually score during the inning, but it would not be enough to close the five-run gap. Rio Grande pitcher Dylan Shockley would get credit for the save while preserving a three-run lead.

The Eagles will be back in action Saturday to conclude the series again Rio Grande. First pitch is scheduled for 1:00.

Austin Johnson -contributing writer