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PROVIDENCE, R.I. - The Navy baseball team began its 2017 Patriot League schedule on Sunday with a neutral site doubleheader versus Holy Cross. In a rematch of the 2016 Patriot League Championship series, the top two predicted teams in the preseason poll used a mixture of pitching in game one and high-powered offense in game two to split the twinbill that was played at Brown University's Murray Stadium. Holy Cross defeated Navy in game one, 6-3 before the Mids came back in game two and won 11-8.

"Game one was a tight, competitive game early on and one big inning late turned it," remarked head coach Paul Kostacopoulos. "In a seven-inning game, one big inning most of the time will make all the difference and it did today. Holy Cross swung the bat well all day.

"The second game was back-and-forth and we needed our offense to come through. Getting 17 hits and 11 runs came from a complete effort by our entire lineup. We constantly kept the pressure on them and recorded a ton of extra-base hits. Today as a whole was really a hitters' day."

For the doubleheader, Navy's offense recorded 14 runs on 25 hits, 10 of which were for extra bases. Individually, Zach Biggers (Fr., Walhalla, S.C.), Jacob Williamson (Fr., Sims, N.C.) and Travis Blue (Sr., Orange, Calif.) each registered three hits with Biggers' total coming from two doubles and a home run. Blue led the Mids with a doubleheader-high three RBIs.

"Zach, Jacob and Travis were consistent threats for us throughout the doubleheader and came up with some really big hits for us," said Kostacopoulos.

Holy Cross 6 - Navy 3

Similar to all seven games of their 2016 series, game one was a close, competitive contest that was dominated by pitching over the first five innings. A pair of preseason All-Patriot League pitchers were showcased as Brandon King and Noah Song (So., Claremont, Calif.) went head-to-head. The senior King got the better of his sophomore protégé as the Mids' bats were silenced to the tune of two hits and a walk over five. The Crusaders were able to get to Song a slight bit more as they scored a single run in the bottom of the second.

The bats woke up in the sixth inning with seven combined runs coming home. The Mids scored two runs in the top of the frame to briefly take the lead. Logan Knowles (Jr., Port Orchard, Wash.) began the rally for Navy with a leadoff single before he was driven in two batters later by Stephen Born (Jr., Strafford, Pa.). An RBI double by Leland Saile (Sr., Land O'Lakes, Fla.) in the ensuing at bat plated Born to make it 2-1.

The host Crusaders responded in the bottom of the sixth with five runs off the pitching combination of Song and Jett Meenach (Sr., Flower Mound, Texas).

Down 6-2 going into their last ups, the Mids went down swinging as Biggers stroked a one-out double to center field. Two batters later with two outs showing on the scoreboard, Blue singled to center field to score Biggers and make it 6-3. Holy Cross' reliever George Capen closed out the contest at that score with a save.

For the game, the two teams tied with eight hits each. Born, Saile and Biggers each recorded two hits for the Mids with both of Biggers' hits going for extra bases.

Song took the loss with a final line of 5.1 innings, six hits, one walk and five runs allowed (four earned). The sophomore struck out seven Holy Cross batters during his outing.

Navy 11 - Holy Cross 8

The offensive sparks that began towards the end of game one carried over in a big way in game two as the two teams combined for 19 runs and 31 hits. From Navy's side, the Mids notched 11 runs with tallies in six of their nine innings at bat with 17 total hits.

Navy took an early 2-0 lead with a pair of runs in the top of the second inning. With two outs, Williamson got the offense in motion with a single to left field. The next batter, his classmate Biggers drove a deep fly over the center field wall for a two-run homer.

One run in the bottom of the second and two in the bottom of the third by Holy Cross gave the host Crusaders a short-lived 3-2 lead.

In the next half inning of action, Navy knotted the game at 3-3 as the first two batters of the frame, Saile and Evan Lowery (Fr., Williamsburg, Va.), went back-to-back with a double and single to manufacture a run.

The longest span of scoreless game two action occurred over the bottom of the fourth and into the top of the sixth as Navy starter George Coughlin (Sr., Arvada, Colo.) stranded two Crusaders in the fourth and put down his opponents in order in the fifth.

With the score tied at 3-3, the Mids broke the game open in the top of the sixth with four runs on four hits and a walk. Williamson made it 4-3 with a one-out solo home run to center field. The next three Navy batters reached as Biggers walked, Adrian Chinnery (Sr., Wilmington, Del.) singled to left field and Christian Hodge (So., Winder, Ga.) singled up the middle for an RBI. Two batters later, Blue tripled to left to score both Chinnery and Hodge and make it 7-3.

The Mids kept their foot on the offense pedal with another run in the seventh as Lowery became the third freshmen of the day to homer as he sent a Zach Fox offering out over the right field wall for a solo home run.

Down 8-3, Holy Cross cut two runs off its deficit in the bottom of the seventh to make it 8-5.

For the third straight inning Navy scored as Knowles singled, stole second base and then came into score on an infield single by Born to increase the Mids' lead to a 9-5 margin.

The back-and-forth action continued in the bottom of the eighth as the Crusaders responded with three runs on four hits to tighten the game to 9-8.

Navy tallied two insurance runs in the top of the ninth as Lowery led off with a walk and Williamson beat out a bunt single. Chinnery started the scoring as he singled through the right side for one RBI before Hodge followed him with a double RBI.

Meenach closed out Holy Cross in the bottom of the ninth to cap the 11-8 victory.

For the game, Navy outhit Holy Cross, 17-14. All nine batters in the Mids' lineup recorded a hit with six notching two or more. Williamson and Hodge led the way with three hits each.

Coughlin earned the win as the senior finished with a line of 6.0 innings, seven hits, one walk and four runs allowed. He struck out five Crusaders in the contest.

"George did a good job, but few lapses hurt him," said Kostacopoulos. "He gave us six innings, which is important in a doubleheader, but seven is ultimately the goal."

Meenach registered his third save of 2017 with 1.1 innings of relief.

The Mids and Crusaders will conclude their four-game series on Monday with two games at the New England Baseball Complex in Northborough, Mass. First pitch of the twinbill is slated for 11:30 a.m.