Warren's Lance Baldensperger

FRANKLIN, Pa. – Warren baseball’s season-opening game at Franklin on Wednesday featured two teams that looked like they were already in mid-season form.

And, while the Dragons came out on the short end of a 3-2 decision, coach Rick Eaton was happy with how his team played.

“It was a good game, we just came out on the wrong side of it,” he said. “It was good to get a game in, and it could have gone either way. It was a well-played game for the first game of the year.”

Warren starting pitcher Ryan Rafalski and Franklin starter Ian Haynes both threw the ball well.

The Dragons (0-1) scored a pair of runs in the third inning, with No. 9 hitter Hunter Loomis getting the frame started with a single. Lance Baldensperger, who reached base three times, followed with a single of his own, and Mitch Grosch and Aidan Morrison brought them in on RBI groundouts, as Haynes was able to wiggle out of a potentially big inning.

The Knights (1-0) re-took the lead in the bottom of the inning, as Carson Wible singled, Zach Taylor walked and, after a sac bunt, both came around to score on sacrifice fly’s off the bats of Connor Rakow and Kaden Keely.

Haynes was relieved by Rakow, who pitched three shutout innings to slam the door on the potent Warren lineup.

With two outs in the seventh, Loomis doubled to keep the game alive for the Dragons, but Rakow was able to strike out Baldensperger to end it. It was the only time the senior standout was retired on the afternoon.

Rafalski gave up just a pair of hits, walked three and struck out three in his four innings of work. Nick Hussey came on in relief and pitched a pair of shutout innings, including getting out of a bases loaded jam unscathed in the fifth.

Loomis and Baldensperger had four of the five Dragon hits, with the other belonging to James Swanson.

“This was a good building block,” noted Eaton. “We’ll get back to practice and get after it.”

The Dragon JV team was a 6-3 winner. Ryan Arnold had a pair of hits, including a triple, and and two RBI, while Alex Zariczny doubled and scored a run.

Ben Berdine (three hits, one earned run, four strikeouts) and Loomis (one hit, zero earned runs, four strikeouts) each pitched two innings for the Dragons, who return to action next Wednesday in their home opener against Erie High.

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WARREN (2)

Baldensperger cf 3-1-2-0, Cummings lf 3-0-0-0, Grosch ss-2b 3-0-0-1, Morrison c 3-0-0-1, Passmore 3b 3-0-0-0, Rafalski p-ss 3-0-0-0, Berdine 1b 2-0-0-0, Swanson rf 3-0-1-0, Loomis dh 3-1-2-0, Gustafson 2b 0-0-0-0, Hussey p 0-0-0-0, Arnold cr 0-0-0-0, Totals 26-2-5-2

FRANKLIN (3)

Taylor lf 1-2-0-0, Wood 2b 3-0-0-0, Rakow ss-p 2-0-1-0, Keely cf 1-0-1-2, Knox 1b 3-0-0-0, Haynes p-3b 2-0-1-0, Banfi 3b-ss 3-0-0-0 Kinch rf 2-0-0-0, Wible dh 3-1-2-0, Harmon c 0-0-0-0, Kockler cr 0-0-0-0, Totals 20-3-5-3

Warren 002 000 0 – 2 5 2

Franklin 102 000 x – 3 5 0

DP – Warren 1, Franklin 1. 2B – Loomis (W). SB – Grosch (W). SF – Keely (F), Rakow (F)

IP H R ER BB SO

Warren

Rafalski (L, 0-1) 4 2 3 2 3 3

Hussey 2 3 0 0 2 1

Franklin

Haynes (W, 1-0) 4 4 2 2 1 4

Rakow (S, 1) 3 1 0 0 1 2

Balk: Haynes