Senior second baseman Nick Talarico hit a pair of home runs, the second of which gave the Spartans a 6-1 lead in the sixth inning, but Case Western Reserve University could not hold onto the late lead in a 15-6 loss at fourth-ranked Baldwin Wallace University on Sunday afternoon.

The Spartans dropped to 7-6 overall with the loss, while Baldwin Wallace improved to 13-2.

Talarico finished the game two-for-two with the two long balls, scoring a pair of runs and driving in three, while also drawing two walks. The home runs were his first two of the season and the ninth and tenth of his career and marked the second multiple home-run game of his career after connecting for a pair against Hiram on March 31, 2021.

CWRU loaded the bases with two outs in the second inning and scored the first run of the game on a walk to junior third baseman Tim Demetris that forced in senior outfielder Kevin Mackenzie. The Spartans added a run in the third when junior first baseman Zack Carinci singled with one out, stole second, and crossed the plate on a run-scoring single by Mackenzie, giving CWRU a 2-0 advantage. In the fourth, Talarico made it a 4-0 Spartan lead with a one-out, two-run home run.

Meanwhile, after allowing a one-out hit in the first, junior left-handed pitcher Reece Marley retired 11 straight batters and did not allow another runner to reach until a leadoff home run to start the bottom of the fifth by Baldwin Wallace's Alexis Castillo made the score 4-1. However, the Spartans responded with two more runs in the top of the sixth when senior shortstop Trey Haley scored on a sacrifice fly by first-year outfielder Matt Trout and Talarico followed with his second home run of the day, a solo shot, to put CWRU ahead 6-1.

However, the Yellow Jackets changed the look of the game in the sixth, scoring five runs with two outs in the inning to even the score at 6-6 and then added four runs in the seventh and five in the eighth to pull away late.

First-year Archer Stankowski suffered the loss in relief to drop to 0-1 on the year. Tyler Walker picked up the win in relief for Baldwin Wallace to improve to 2-0, while Garrett Miller pitched the final two innings for the save.

The Spartans will face another local rival on Tuesday when the team plays host to John Carroll at Nobby's Ballpark. The first pitch on March 21 is slated for 4:00 p.m.