ORANGE, Calif. – A ninth-inning rally broke open a tied game as the Chapman University baseball team fell 9-3 to visiting Piedmont. The Panthers dropped the season-opening series with the loss.

Piedmont scored six runs in the ninth inning, highlighted by a three-run homer from Sean Bailey, to take the game and the series. Until the ninth, the pitching once again stood out as both pitching staffs recorded 11 strikeouts in the game.

Graham Stogner struck out seven in a six-inning start, allowing just one run on six hits without issuing a walk. However, three bullpen pitchers combined to allow the final eight runs over the last three innings after entering the game with a lead.

Joey Capobianco drove in the Panthers' first run of 2025 with a game-tying single in the fourth inning. He came through again in the sixth inning with another two-out single to give the Panthers a 3-1 lead. He followed Brad Lang's go-ahead, two-out double that gave Chapman a 2-1 lead.

The Panthers and Piedmont close their three-game set tomorrow at 9 a.m.