The Misericordia University baseball team saw its six-game winning streak come to an end as the Cougars were bested by Wilkes, 6-5, Tuesday afternoon at Tambur Field. Both teams combined for six home runs, with seven of the 11 total runs coming via the long ball.
 
Jared Hoffman hit a ninth-inning two-run homer to pull MU within one run of trying the game. He finished the day with two hits and a pair of RBI.
 
Brock Bollinger also had two hits, including a homer. Jake McDonough doubled and scored a run.
 
Aidan Paduck struck out three batters in 2.1 innings of relief pitching.
 
The Colonels came out firing in the top of the first, recording hits on the first three at-bats of the afternoon to take a 2-0 lead.
 
Wilkes tacked on a third run with a solo shot in the top of the fourth.
 
Misericordia got on the board in the bottom frame of the fourth after Bollinger laced a ball into the outfield that was misplayed. Two runs came in to score on the error as the Cougars pulled themselves within a run of tying the ballgame, which now stood at 3-2.
 
Wilkes hit back-to-back solo home runs in the sixth to take a 5-2 lead. MU reclaimed some of the momentum when Hoffman dove to his left and made a spectacular snag for the second out, preventing a hard-hit ball from sneaking down the first base line.
 
Bollinger answered back with a homer of his own in the bottom of the sixth, drilling a ball off the scoreboard in left-center to make the score 5-3.
 
The Colonels hit a leadoff home run in the ninth to restore their three-run lead.
 
With McDonough on second base and one out in the bottom of the ninth, Hoffman hit a towering shot to left-center that sailed over the wall. The two-run homer proved to be all the Cougars could muster, as Wilkes recorded the final two outs and took the ballgame, 6-5.
 
Misericordia gets its final MAC Freedom series of the regular season underway with a home matchup against Stevens, Friday at 3:30.