BRADENTON, Fla. - The Eastern Kentucky University baseball Colonels fell to the Central Michigan Chippewas Saturday, 4-2, in their first game of the Florida All-Star Baseball Challenge. Junior lefty Christian Friedrich (1-1) pitched 6.2 innings in the losing effort. With the defeat, the Colonels fall to 4-3-1 (0-0 OVC).

"We had plenty of opportunities," head coach Elvis Dominguez said. "We just couldn't manufacture enough runs against a very good team."

In the third inning, junior Aaron Barrows doubled with two outs. The next batter, senior Tyler Barnett, also doubled, driving in Barrows and giving the Colonels a 1-0 lead.

In the next inning, freshman Ryan Faidley ripped a one-out single, and was later driven home on an RBI single by sophomore Anthony Ottrando.

The following innings saw the Colonels squander several opportunities to add to their lead. They twice had men on second and third with one out, but were never able to convert runs. In the fifth inning, junior Dylan McMaine smacked a lead off double, but was never driven in. And in the seventh, junior Matt Davis led off the inning with a single, but was also left stranded.

The Colonels took a 2-1 lead into the bottom of the seventh, before a string of errors and odd breaks caused Friedrich to allow three runs in the inning. The Chippewas went up 4-2, and would hold the lead until the end.

Friedrich went 6.2 innings, allowing four runs (two of them unearned), on four hits and five strikeouts. Sophomore Chris Hord came in and pitched an inning and a third, giving up no runs on just one hit. Hord has yet to allow a run this season.

At the plate, the Colonels were led by Barrows, who went 2-for-4 with a run scored.

The Colonels return to action tomorrow, March 9, at 3:00 p.m. when they take on Indiana-Purdue at Fort Wayne.