Box Score Shaun House hit a two-out home run in the top of the ninth inning to help Radford rally from a 2-0 deficit and down High Point, 3-2, Saturday afternoon in Big South Conference baseball action at Erath Field.

The Highlanders improve to 5-12 and 2-0 in the Big South, while the hard-luck Panthers surrendered the eventual winning run in the ninth inning or later for the sixth time this season. HPU falls to 4-18 (0-2 in League play).

The loss spoiled a stellar effort from High Point starter Bob Helman, who retired 22 of the first 23 batters he faced and held the Highlanders hitless for seven innings. 

Radford starter Justin Morgan also pitched well, scattering eight hits and one run over 6 2/3 innings. Cory Koliscak (1-0) earned the win in relief for RU, while Mark Shorey (1-5) took the loss out of the bullpen for the Panthers. Bret Lieberman threw a scoreless ninth for his first save of the year.

High Point pounded out six hits off Morgan in the first three innings -- including three in the third inning, but following singles by Rey Rojas, Josh Doane, and Chris Ramirez, Morgan got Corey Stang to foul out and Seby Renta to fly out to end the threat.

Meanwhile, Helman was cruising along, retiring the Highlanders in order through five innings before Matt Mantione drew a lead-off walk in the top of the sixth. RU moved him to third on a sacrifice bunt by Jesse Ross and a groundout by Scott Gvozdas, but Helman induced Stuart Ritchie to ground out to second and the game remained scoreless.

The Panthers finally broke through with a pair of runs in the seventh. Matt Calcagni lined a two-out single to left, stole second and scored on Rojas' RBI double to left center off RU reliver Robby Bursey. After Koliscak relived Bursey, Rojas stole third and then scored on a wild pitch for a 2-0 Panther advantage.

Radford wasted no time in mounting a comeback. Mark Fleisher led off the top of the eighth by breaking up Helman's no-hitter with a single into left field, and John Vellines lined a base hit into left center. After the runners moved to second and third on a balk, Mantione cut HPU's lead in half when his sacrifice fly scored Fleisher. After Shorey relived Helman on the mound, Gvozdas tied the game up with an RBI single that scored pinch-runner Brett Smith.

The Panthers mounted a threat in the bottom of the inning when Renta reached on high fly ball that landed just out of the reach of Mantione in right field. Anthony Bell ran for Renta, stole second, and advanced to third on a throwing error by RU catcher Dean Altavilla. But Koliscak got Josh Cotten to ground out to end the rally.

Shorey struck out Alan Ashworth and Kellen Wohlford for the first two outs in the top of the ninth, but House hit his first home run of the season over the wall in left center to give the Highlanders the eventual winning run and a 3-2 lead.

Matt Richardson reached on a one-out infield single in the bottom of the ninth and advanced to second on a wild pitch, but Lieberman struck out Rojas to earn the save and help the Highlanders take the second game of the series.

Cotten (1-2) will face off with Radford's Tom Graham (0-0) in Sunday's series finale (1:00 pm). Click here for live stats.