ROCK HILL, South Carolina - The Black Bears opened up the 2017 season traveling to South Carolina to face the Winthrop University Eagles, where the Eagles took the lead early and wouldn't allow Maine to catch up, as they took the season opener 12-5.

Justin Courtney started on the mound for the Black Bears, while Reece Green started for the Eagles.

The Black Bears looked to have a rough start with two-up and two-down in the first, but Danny Casals got the first hit of the year for Maine, hitting a two-out double to keep Maine alive in the first. Christopher Bec would single after that, and on a wild throw would advance to second while Casals rounded third to give Maine their first run of the season, a 1-0 lead on the error. Jonathan Bennett was up next, and would hit a single deep enough to score Bec, who would put Maine up 2-0 going into the bottom of the first.

In the bottom of the first, Winthrop would answer right back with six runs. Justin Courtney started the inning off walking the leadoff Eagle, followed by hitting the second batter, and walking the third to give Winthrop loaded bases with no one out, and then a double would send in two runs to tie it. Winthrop would follow up with another two-RBI double, a sacrifice RBI, and an RBI triple to take a 6-2 lead after one inning.

The Black Bears would score again in the third inning, with Bennett hitting his second RBI single of the afternoon, scoring Danny Casals, cutting the lead to 6-3. Winthrop would answer back in the bottom of the third with a lead-off solo home run, putting the lead back to four runs for the Eagles.

After a three-up, three-down top of the fourth, Winthrop tallied another solo home run in the bottom of the fourt to lead 8-3.

Maine scored again in the top of the fifth when Tyler Schwanz came home after a Jeremy Pena fly-out, cutting the lead back to four runs, 8-4. The bottom of the fifth saw Sam McCarthy come in in relief of Courtney. McCarthy let up three runs in the third inning on two hits, two walks, a wild pitch, and a hit batter in the inning, giving the Eagles a 11-4 lead.

In the top of the seventh Tyler Schwanz scored a run on an RBI single from Christopher Bec, giving Maine their fifth run. Allowing two hits in the bottom of the seventh, but no runs, Maine was looking to build off the momentum in the eighth, but only managed one hit and left two in base. With Ryan Worthington coming into the game in relief in the bottom of the eighth, he opened up the half of the inning with a strikeout, but it was followed up by a Winthrop triple, and a sacrifice fly would score the runner for the final score of 12-5.

Justin Courtney gets the loss for Maine, he went four full innings allowing six hits, eight runs, six of them earned, walked four, struck out four, and hit one. Reece Green for Winthrop gets the win on 6 full innings, seven hits, four runs (three earned), two walks, and four strikeouts.

The two teams will face off again Saturday at 3:00pm, and again Sunday at 12:00pm.

-UMaine-