STRUTHERS, OH - The baseball team beat #6 Bethel College 4-3 in the opening game of the 2008 NCCAA World Series. The Hawks faced elimination after trailing 2-0 heading into their last at-bat in the top of the 7th inning. However the Hawks had fight left in them as junior Matt Crane drove in two runs in the 7th to knot the game at 2-2 and force extra inning play.

David Hughes led off the top of the 8th inning with an infield single. After a sacrifice bunt moved Hughes to second base, senior shortstop PJ Sadler drove in Hughes from second to go up 3-2. Two batters later Justin Hollingsworth drove in Sadler who reached third base on a Billy Walling single. Hollingsworth's RBI would be the game-winning run as Bethel scored just one run in the bottom of the 8th inning to make the final 4-3.

BJ Byerly started the game on the mound and pitching six innings before senior reliever Brandon Hamlett came in to toss the last two innings for the win. Hamlett sits at 8-3 on the year after the come-from-behind-win on the mound.

Crane and Sadler finished the day with two hits each. The Hawks will play tomorrow at 1:30pm in against the winner of game eight, being played at 7:00pm tonight. #2 Mount Vernon Nazarene will play the winner of the #7 Geneva College and #10 Colorado Christian College being played at 2:15pm today in game eight tonight.