FERRUM, Va. -- Ferrum College dropped game one of a three-game Conference Carolinas baseball series with Belmont Abbey College, falling 12-1 this afternoon at Panther Field. The Crusaders come into the weekend ranked #18 nationally among NCAA Division II schools.

RECORDS
#18 Belmont Abbey 10-4, 9-1 CC
Ferrum 3-7, 1-6 CC

THE BASICS
Belmont Abbey scored a run in the second inning and one in the fourth for an early 2-0 lead. Niko Papathanasiou scored a run for Ferrum in the bottom of the fourth inning off an error, but that was all the Panthers would get.

The Crusaders picked up three runs in the fifth inning and one in the sixth to extend the lead to 6-1, then blew it open with six runs in the seventh, including a pair of home runs, for the final count. Starter Drew Stegura kept the Panthers at bay with 10 strikeouts over six innings. 

KEY STATS
Belmont Abbey: SP Drew Stegura (W, 4-0) 6 inn, 4 hits, 0 ER, 2 BB, 10 K; Matthew Fattore 4-6, double, 2 RBI
Ferrum: SP Garrett Sawyer (L, 0-1) 5 inn, 3 hits, 2 ER, 3 BB, 2 K; Papathanasiou 1-3, double, run

UP NEXT
Coach Eric Owens' team will be back at Panther Field Saturday with games two and three of the series, starting at noon.