FORT WAYNE, Ind. - The Marian University baseball team split a Mid-Central College Conference doubleheader at the University of Saint Francis (Ind.) on Saturday afternoon, but took three-out-of-four in the season series. The Knights fell 7-6 in game one before coming back to earn a 14-8 victory in game two. They are now 21-21 on the season and 13-9 in MCC play.

The Knights opened the scoring in game one as junior Cory Emmons hit an RBI-single to stake MU a 1-0 lead. USF tallied two to take a 2-1 lead after an inning of play, and the Cougars added two more in the third to take a 4-1 lead.

MU responded with a run in the top of the sixth as Emmons scored on an error to cut the gap to 4-2 with an inning to play. USF answered in the bottom half with a run to move the lead back to three at 5-2. However, the Knights blew up in the top of the seventh.

They tallied four runs as Emmons ripped a two-run single and sophomore Jared Mills hammered a two-run homerun to give the Knights a 6-5 lead heading into the lower half of the final inning. The homer was Mills' fourth of the campaign.

The Cougars, however, took advantage of back-to-back singles to open the inning and a walk to load the bases with no outs. A hit-by-pitch scored the tying run and a bases-loaded walk gave USF the 7-6 victory.

Senior Patrick Midla picked up the defeat after he threw six innings to fall to 2-6 on the season. Emmons led the way after he went 3-for-3 with three RBI. Mills, senior Tony Goodpaster and junior Todd Ungru each had a hit, while Mills hit a two-run shot for the Knights.

The second game opened in the same fashion as the Knights opened an early lead in the top of the first. Junior Bobby Willis led off the game with a triple and scored on an error that allowed Goodpaster to reach. Emmons hit an RBI-ground out and Mills ripped an RBI-single to give MU a 3-0 lead.

They added one more in each of the second and third innings to take a 5-0 lead. Ungru hit an RBI-sacrifice fly to score freshman Brett Metcalf in the second, and Metcalf drove in junior Austin Gibson in the third to open the lead. However, USF answered in the third with four runs of its own to cut the lead to one at 5-4.

The Cougars tied the score in the bottom of the fourth, but the Knights broke the game wide open in the fifth as they tallied five runs to open a 10-5 lead. Sophomore Evan Schludecker hit an RBI-double, and Ungru followed with an RBI-single. Emmons drove in a run by drawing a bases-loaded walk before Mills hit an RBI-single for the inning's fourth run. Gibson drove in the final run of the inning with another bases-loaded walk to stake the Knights the five-run advantage.

USF tallied one in the bottom half before the Knights added three in the top of the sixth. Willis tallied his sixth homerun of the season, a solo shot, and Ungru drilled his 10th bomb, a two-run shot, of the campaign to open a 13-6 lead. Ungru is the first MU player to hit double figures in homeruns since Dave Scott in 2004.

USF rallied with one more in the sixth, but the Knights answered in the seventh as Mills scored on an error to make the score 14-7. USF notched one in the bottom of the seventh, but it was too little, too late for the Cougars as the Knights hung on for the 14-8 win and the split.

Ungru went 3-for-4 with a homerun, four RBI and three runs scored to lead MU, while Mills finished 3-for-5 with two RBI and a run scored. Junior Jake Mullis finished 3-for-4, while Metcalf went 2-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored. Willis added two hits, an RBI and three runs scored for the Knights.

Sophomore Ben Walters picked up the victory to improve to 4-4 on the campaign after he scattered six hits over five innings for the win. Junior Aaron Wilder finished the ballgame with two innings of four-hit relief.

The Knights head to Indiana Tech (24-21) on Tuesday for a non-conference doubleheader at Warrior Field in Fort Wayne, Ind. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m.