CLEVELAND, Ohio - Cleveland State opened a three-game Horizon League series with a pair of close setbacks to Valparaiso on Friday afternoon at Viking Field.
The Vikings late rally fell short in game one in a 5-3 setback before CSU fell in the nightcap, 4-3, in eight innings.
Valparaiso broke open a scoreless game with four runs in the fourth inning and added another tally in the sixth to take a 5-0 lead.
CSU came back with a pair of runs in the sixth inning as Mackenzie Joecken delivered a two-run double that scored Melissa Jacobsen and Riley Ries. The Vikings plated a run in the seventh inning on Hanna Breeden's RBI single which brought the tying run to the plate, but Ries was retired on a fly ball to centerfield.
Jacobsen finished 2-for-4 with a run to lead the CSU offense in the first game, while Breeden, Ries, Joecken and Kait Gairing all had one hit apiece.
Kristin Catalano worked 3 2/3 innings of relief, giving up one run on four hits with a strikeout. Breeden started and threw the first 3 1/3 innings, striking out four.
CSU scored a pair of unearned runs in the third inning to take an early 2-0 lead in game two on a sacrifice fly from Sofia Johantgen and a Valpo error which allowed a run to score.
Jacobsen's RBI single scored Bailee Gray in the fourth to push the CSU lead to 3-0 and it stayed that way until the seventh when the Crusaders scored three runs to send the game into extra innings.
Sam Stewart led off the eighth inning with a home run to give Valpo a 4-3 lead and the Vikings were retired in order in the bottom half of the eighth to end the game.
Gray finished 2-for-4, while Joecken worked 6 1/3 innings, giving up three runs on five hits with three strikeouts.
The final game of the series will be played on Saturday (April 15) with first pitch slated for 12:00 pm.