The Emory University baseball team dropped the early game of a pair of seven inning contests at Georgia Gwinnett College on Saturday, falling 4-3, but bounced back with a 4-1 victory in the late game to earn a split in the doubleheader with the Grizzlies.

The win in the late game was keyed by a strong pitching effort from freshman Paul Merolla, who shut down Georgia Gwinnett with six scoreless innings, scattering seven hits and a walk while striking out four.  He earned the victory, improving to 4-1 on the year, while lowering his ERA to 3.78.

Emory jumped out to a 1-0 lead on a two-out RBI single from freshman second baseman Dylan Eisner in the second inning.  The Eagles added two more in the fifth, one on an RBI single from freshman Chris Slivka and the other when junior Brandon Hannon scored on an error, and a final run in the seventh on an RBI single from sophomore Chris Brown.

Gwinnett Georgia scored its only run of the game in the bottom of the seventh of reliever Graham Bloomsmith, making his second appearance of the day, but the sophomore would shut down the Grizzlies to close out the game.

In the early contest, Emory fell behind 2-0 after two innings, but a two-RBI double from junior Daniel Iturrey evened the score in the fourth frame.  The Eagles would take their first lead of the game in the sixth inning, when junior Jared Kahn reached on an error stole second base, and scored the go-ahead run on a second error, giving Emory a 3-2 advantage.  However, the Grizzlies scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the sixth to regain the lead, and held on with a scoreless top of the seventh.

Freshman Tyler Sprague took the loss for Emory, falling to 3-4 for the season, after allowing all four runs on seven hits over five and a third innings pitched.  Starter Frank Warren earned the win for Georgia Gwinnett, while Joe Albertson claimed a save after recording the final two outs.

Emory stands at 17-14 this season after the split, while Georgia Gwinnett, an NAIA program, has a record of 26-19.  The Eagles have now split all four scheduled doubleheaders they have played this season.

The Eagles will return to Chappell Park to host Oglethorpe University on Tuesday, April 16^th at 3:00 PM, the start of a four-game home stand for the team.