Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 HARRISONBURG, Va. – The baseball team exploded for 32 runs Saturday, splitting a doubleheader at James Madison. Ryan Karl and Spencer Scorza had three home runs apiece through the 16-15 loss and 17-8 victory at Veterans Memorial Park.
 
Cornell (6-3) had a combined seven home runs on the day, including the first two of the season from Chris Cruz and another from Ben Swinford. Cruz and Scorza each had a combined seven hits through the twin bill, with the Big Red bats topping 20 hits in each game.
 
Game 1: JAMES MADISON 16, CORNELL 15 (Box Score)
Karl and Kevin Tatum had four hits apiece and six Big Red batters had multiple RBIs, but Cornell couldn't hold on to leads in the seventh, eighth or ninth innings.
 
Scorza's two-run homer to left in the second tied the game at 2, but the Dukes plated four in the bottom half of the inning with the help of two doubles and a two-run homer of their own.
 
Cornell clawed back ahead as Connor Kaufmann pitched effectively in long relief. JD Whetsel hit an RBI double to left-center, then Ryan Plantier and Cruz drew bases-loaded walks to cut the visitors' deficit to 6-5 in the fourth. Karl then led off the fifth with his first home run to tie the game with back-to-back doubles by Scorza and Tatum pulling Cornell ahead. Whetsel one-out base hit to center plated Tatum for an 8-6 lead.
 
Karl led off the seventh with his second solo homer of the game. Tatum drew a one-out walk, followed up by Swinford's two-run homer to left-center to push the score to 11-7.
 
But the Big Red couldn't hold on to the lead, with a fielding error leading to five unearned runs – the last one of which coming as part of a grand slam to give JMU a 12-11 lead. Karl and Tatum both had one-run doubles in the top of the eighth to pull Cornell back ahead, but then another error in the bottom of the frame allowed the Dukes to go up 14-13.
 
Cornell had one last surge in it, with Tom D'Alessandro pulling a one-out double to left. After a popup left the Big Red on its final out, Cruz delivered with a two-run homer to right-center – his first of the season – to give the Big Red a 15-14 lead.
 
JMU drew three walks in the bottom of the ninth to load the bases, then Bobby San Martin smacked a two-run double to plate the tying and winning runs.
 
Karl was 4-for-5 with a double, two home runs, four runs scored and three RBIs. Tatum was 4-for-4 with three doubles, three runs and two RBIs. Kaufmann struck out five in his 3.2 innings of work.
 
Game 2: CORNELL 17, JAMES MADISON 8 (Box Score)
Scorza, Cruz and Plantier each had four hits and three runs, as the Big Red posted its highest run total since a 19-6 victory March 18, 2012 at Delaware State.
 
The Big Red jumped out to a six-run lead and chased the Dukes' starter before he recorded a single out – thanks in large part to back-to-back-to-back home runs. Whetsel and D'Alessandro led off the game with walks, then Whetsel came around to score on Plantier's single to left. Cruz followed with a three-run opposite-field home run, followed by solo shots riding the wind to right from Scorza and Karl.
 
But much like the first game, JMU immediately responded – this time scoring five in the bottom of the second to cut the Big Red's cushion to one run.
 
Cornell started to pull ahead for good with four runs in the fourth. Plantier and Cruz pulled singles to start the frame, then Scorza walked to load the bases. Karl also drew a walk to score Plantier, then Matt Hall stroked a two-run single to center.

The rout was on with four more runs in the fifth – courtesy of a two-run homer from Scorza and a two-run double from Swinford out of the nine-hole – and three more runs in the sixth.
 
Three Big Red pitchers combined for 13 strikeouts in the game. Nick Busto earned the victory with 5.1 innings of work, fanning six. Tiger Smith then retired eight of the final nine batters he faced in his collegiate debut, and Paul Balestrieri struck out the side in the ninth in his first appearance.