ADRIAN, Mich. – The Calvin University baseball team dropped the opening game of a big three-game weekend series against Adrian College by the score of 12-2 in eight innings on Friday.
 
Calvin (17-12, 9-3) starting pitcher Nolan Coil (Valparaiso, Ind./Valparaiso) entered the game with a run of 21 consecutive scoreless innings and held Adrian (19-12, 11-2 MIAA) scoreless in the first inning, but defensive miscues and home runs would plague the Knights the rest of the way.
 
A two-out error extended the second inning and led to the Bulldogs' first run of the game, and then another Calvin error in the third inning led the way to a two-run home run by the Bulldogs' Ryan Davis to push the Adrian lead to 3-0 after three innings.
 
Adrian continued to add in the middle innings with back-to-back home runs to lead off the fourth inning, and then ended Coil's day on the mound with four more runs in the fifth inning to extend the lead to 9-0.
 
Nathaniel Graham (Lake Odessa, Mich./Lakewood/Kalamazoo Valley CC) put the Knights on the score board with a solo home run in the sixth inning, and Ryan Tschirhart (Clinton, Mich./Clinton) drove in the other Calvin run in the seventh, but Davis hit his second home run of the game in the bottom of the eighth inning to push the Bulldogs' lead to 10 and end the game.
 
Coil (5-2) pitched 5.0 innings and allowed nine runs (seven earned) in defeat and is now 3-1 in starts against MIAA teams this season.
 
The Knights were held to four hits for the game, with Gabe Bonemer (Okemos, Mich./Okemos), Ryan Brown (Caledonia, Mich./Caledonia), Noah Swope (Portage, Mich./Portage Central) and Graham each recording one hit apiece.
 
NEXT UP: These two teams will finish their three-game weekend series with a doubleheader tomorrow (Saturday, April 19) at Calvin. First pitch of game one is scheduled for 1:00 PM.