Box Score
DAVIDSON, N.C. – The Fairleigh Dickinson baseball team was unable to hold off UMass Lowell, who rallied with five runs in the eighth inning to get past the Knights, 12-9 at Wilson Field on Saturday afternoon.
 
After leading 5-0, the Knights (0-5) were on top for most of the game until the late surge by the River Hawks (2-4) earned them the come-from-behind victory.
 
Junior third baseman Bobby Romano had a big day for the Knights with a 4-for-5 effort, three runs and two RBI, while Ryan Brennan went 2-for-2 with two RBI and two runs, including his first home run of the season.
 
The Knights pounded out 15 hits on the afternoon including home runs by Brennan and Romano but UMass Lowell fought back and came out on top.
 
The Knights scored the game's first five runs through four innings of play. The team's first two runs came across in the second inning courtesy of a James Donlon RBI single and a Hunter Reeser groundout.
 
Then in the top of the third, Brennan delivered the huge blow a two-run home run, his first of the season, which built the 4-0 lead.
 
FDU starter Corey Zeller kept the River Hawks quiet through the first three frames, limiting them to just two hits along the way.
 
In the home fourth, the River Hawks' bats broke out with three runs on four hits. Ausin Young's two-run homer kickstarted the scoring for Lowell.
 
Leading 6-4 in the top of the sixth, Romano provided the Knights some temporary breathing room by launching his second home run of the campaign – this one a two-run shot – that extended the lead to 8-4.
 
However, the River Hawks immediately answered with three runs of their own in the home half of the frame courtesty of a three-run homer by Chris Sharpe, which made it a one-run game, 8-7.
 
After a scoreless seventh inning, the Knights netted a run in the top of the eighth when Evan McDonald drew a bases-loaded walk.
 
But the big inning came in the bottom of the frame when the River Hawks exploded for five runs. Two homers did the damage, including a grand slam by left fielder Colby Maiola, which resulted in the 12-9 lead.
 
Zeller was solid for FDU and earned a no decision. The sophomore right-hander went five innings, scattered nine hits, allowed two earned runs and struck out three.
 
The River Hawks used six pitchers and Nick Rand picked up the win by recording the final four outs of the day.
 
The Knights close out their three-game weekend in North Carolina on Sunday against the host Davidson Wildcats at 1:30 p.m. That game will be streamed on the A10 Network.