BABSON PARK, Fla. - The 11th-ranked Embry-Riddle baseball team scored early and late while getting another solid outing from Stetson Nelson en route to a 9-3 series-opening victory at Webber International on Friday night. The Eagles (5-1, 1-0) scored three runs in the first and never looked back, putting the game away late against the Warriors (4-2, 0-1).

The two teams will meet on Saturday at 12 p.m. for a doubleheader at Heart of Florida Medical Regional Center Field.

Nelson (1-1) got an early lead when the Eagles plated three runs in the top of the first against Sean Stanislawski (2-1), including two off the bat of Matt Jacobs when the junior doubled to left to bring in Liam Goodall and Joshua Garcia after Jake Cavender scored on a Goodall RBI fielder's choice for the first run of the day.

Nelson worked around a leadoff walk and a hit batter in the home-half of the first before Tobias Moreno collected the first of his three hits in the second, plating courtesy runner Kyle Zirbes for a 4-0 Eagle lead.

After the top of the second both starting pitchers settled in, throwing up scoreless inning after scoreless inning. Stanislawski retired 10 consecutive Eagles from the end of the second through the sixth and the Warriors finally got on the board in the last of the sixth when A.J. Arroyo doubled down the right field line to score Jesus Villalobos from second, cutting the deficit to 4-1.

The Blue and Gold would answer in the next half-inning, going up 6-1 thanks to a couple Warrior errors. Nelson delivered a shutdown inning in the bottom of the seventh and the Eagles put the game out of reach with two more runs in the eighth off of reliever Kyle Cunningham. Enderson Velasquez scored on a wild pitch after singling to begin the inning and moving around the bases on a Goodall single and wild pitch. Hunter Bruehl recorded a sacrifice fly to left to bring in Goodall and to give the visitors an 8-1 lead.
 
Nelson registered two more strikeouts in the eighth and the Eagles tacked a run in the ninth when Garcia grounded out to second to plate Moreno.
 
Nelson was relieved by Austen Thrailkill to start the ninth and the Warriors were able to score twice before Clayton Wagner entered and got the final two outs to secure the 9-3 victory.
 
Moreno finished 3-for-5 with an RBI and two runs scored while Jacobs recorded a pair of RBIs for the Eagles. Nelson was superb, ended his outing at eight innings, allowing one run on five hits with nine strikeouts.