DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - Leap Day was not kind to the 13th-ranked Embry-Riddle baseball team as the Eagles dropped both ends of a twin bill to Nova Southeastern, 4-2 and 9-0, allowing the Sharks to take the weekend Sunshine State Conference series. The Eagles (11-5, 3-3 SSC) managed just two runs against the Shark (8-9, 4-2 SSC) pitching staff on Saturday, and were shutout in the series finale, marking the first shutout of the season for the Eagle offense.

The Eagles will host Seton Hill on Tuesday at Sliwa Stadium for a 5 p.m. game.

Game 1 - NSU 4, ERAU 2
Payton Rice was locked in a pitcher's duel with Brady Acker in the day's opener, but the Sharks used a big sixth inning to go up 3-0 and the Eagles left too many runners on base throughout the contest to fall 4-2.

Neither team scored through the first five frames with Rice and Acker matching zeroes, but a leadoff walk for the Sharks in the sixth was the catalyst for a three-run inning against Rice, who was eventually relieved by Dillon Moran. Moran was able to get out of the frame with no more runs scoring, but the damage was done and the Eagles were down 3-0.

ERAU finally got a run against Acker in the sixth when Luis Olivier collected a sac fly to left, scoring Kyle Guttveg from third. The Eagles eventually loaded the bases in that inning against Acker with two outs, but Lucas Reid came in and got the final out to keep the score 3-1 NSU.

The visitors added a run in the eighth off of Moran, but once again the Eagles answered with one of their own in the bottom of the inning when Olivier singled in Gutveg. The Blue and Gold again loaded the bases in the frame, this time with just one out, but Matt Kavanaugh got Robert Post and John Devine to fly out to end the inning and the Eagle threat.

ERAU brought the tying run to the plate in the last of the ninth, but Kavanaugh retired the last two Eagles in the game to seal the 4-2 win and earn the save.

Rice (L, 2-1) took the loss in five innings of work while Guttveg finished with three hits and Olivier drove in both runs.

Game 2 - NSU 9, ERAU 0
The series finale was rarely in doubt after the visitors scored two runs early and then piled on late for the 9-0 shutout to win the series. Eagle starter Kelsey Ward had trouble with his command was lasted on 2.1 innings before John Barone came in. 

The Eagle hitters just could not solve Cooper Omans as the freshman dealt six scoreless innings against ERAU, allowing just two infield hits and striking out six before Jarrett Bond and Jarrett Kryzanowski finished the Eagles off in the final three frames.

NSU collected 14 hits to the Eagles' five.

Notes
• ERAU saw its' five-game Leap Day winning streak snapped
• Joe Balsam saw his scoreless streak snapped in his ninth appearance after 13.1 innings to start his collegiate career
• In the day's opener, both teams threw 133 pitches each