Junior left-fielder Darian Herncane dug into the box in the top of the ninth inning with the final game of the Binghamton baseball team’s four-game season opening series on the line. The instructions from Binghamton head coach Tim Sinicki were clear: look for a first-pitch fastball. Down 9-7 with the bases loaded, Herncane got exactly the pitch he wanted, crushing a game-winning grand slam that kept the Bearcats (1-3) from being swept by Houston Baptist (3-1) to start the season.

“He handles fastballs really well — Darian [Herncane] simply jumped on the first pitch of the at bat,” Sinicki said. “He hit the ball 420-430 feet … then to get the win with the one-two-three bottom of the ninth was a big lift for us.”

In Friday’s season opener, the Bearcats were plagued by a series of costly errors that opened the door to an 8-5 Husky win. Houston Baptist scored three of its runs on defensive miscues by way of three errors, two of which came in the fourth inning, leading to an HBU lead of 7-0. The three unearned runs served to drastically alter the outcome of a game that was won by three runs. Binghamton’s number one starting pitcher, senior Mike Bunal, pitched 3 1/3 innings before being pulled in favor of sophomore Nick Wegmann after being knocked around for five earned runs.

“Mike [Bunal] didn’t have his best stuff on the day,” Sinicki said. “The errors were disappointing but not crucial … I’m sure Mike will be better his next time out.”

With game two of the series tied at three in the sixth inning, BU sophomore pitcher Joe Orlando earned the loss in relief, giving up six runs in two thirds of an inning. HBU held the Bearcats to one run in the final three innings, securing the Husky’s 11-4 win and a two game advantage in the series.

After missing the entire 2015 season due to a shoulder injury, redshirt junior Jake Cryts took the mound for game three on Saturday for his first start since the 2014 NCAA Regional against Oklahoma State. Cryts threw for 5 1/3 innings, giving up three earned runs but his strong return outing wasn’t enough as the Bearcats fell, 4-3.

Despite the lopsided outcome of the series, the Bearcats outhit the Huskies, 47-43, on the weekend. Sinicki attributed much of Binghamton’s uncharacteristic fielding woes to the turf field after practicing indoors all offseason.

“We’ve been taking ground balls on the gym floor so [we were] moving to a natural surface field for the first time this season,” Sinicki said. “I think there’s an adjustment that will take a little while but at the same time we missed a bunch of plays that we should make and we will make down the road.”

The opening series was BU’s first since the graduation of standouts Zack Blanden and Jake Thomas. Their slots in center and right field were filled by sophomore center fielder CJ Krowiak while sophomore Chris McGee, junior Eddie Posavec and freshman Daniel Franchi platooned in right field. Combined, the four batted .278 (15-for-50) for the series. Sinicki praised the athleticism of Krowiak who moved from the infield to center field over the offseason.

“CJ’s been doing a great job in the lead-off role but you don’t really replace a guy like Jake Thomas very easily,” Sinicki said. “So we need our guys to pick up where he and Zack [Blanden] left off last year and for the most part we did that this weekend. We swung the bats very well and out hit them by a few different gages and put some runs up.”

The Bearcats are set to return to action on Friday with a three-game series against UNC at Greensboro. First pitch is scheduled for 4 p.m. from UNCG Baseball Stadium in Greensboro, North Carolina with the final two games of the series continuing on Saturday and Sunday.