WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Grace's baseball team was knocking on the door down the stretch against (RV) Keiser on Friday afternoon. The Lancers battled back to within one, but an offensive outburst in the final two innings left the final score 15-5.

Grant Hartley opened the scoring with a solo blast to put the Lancers ahead 1-0 after two innings. 

Parker Newby was tabbed as the starter, making his Lancer debut. He posted an impressive outing, scattering three hits over three innings while collecting five strikeouts on the day.

The narrow lead held until middle innings when the Seahawks tacked up a pair of two run innings to move ahead on the scoreboard 4-1.

Grace chipped away at the deficit, scoring in consecutive innings to get within a run heading into the bottom half of the seventh. 

Josh Cosme provided an RBI double to bring home Matt Friesema in sixth. An inning later, the Lancers put two runners in scoring position with hits from Jose Ayala and Maximo De Leon. Carter Stogsdill forced in a run with an RBI groundout to the right side, putting the margin at one.

The Lancers loaded the bases in the eighth, putting pressure on the home team. Pinch hitter Alex Rudolph singled up the middle to bring in Hartley and Keenan LeBlanc, but the rally ended there.

Unfortunately, KU was up to the task and plated 11 runs over the next two at-bats to put the game out of reach.

Ryan Stark picked up two hits and a stolen base, while Hartley finished the day 1 for 2 with a pair of free passes, two runs and an RBI. De Leon chipped in two hits and two stolen bases.

The three-game series wraps up with the finale scheduled for 11 a.m. on Saturday at Silvester Jr. Field.