Staff photo / Joe Smon Hubbard center fielder Andrew Frank fires the ball to the infield during the Eagles’ 12-4 loss to Lakeview on Monday in Hubbard.

HUBBARD — The first postseason game for the Hubbard baseball team was a lot like their regular season: all over the place.

The Eagles endured an epically bad first inning, rallied twice to get back into the game but struggled toward the end of a 12-4 loss to Lakeview in a Division II sectional first-round matchup.

Hubbard went down 4-0 in the first inning, when Bulldogs’ starter Nick DeMonica tossed an immaculate inning — nine pitches, nine strikes, three strikeouts. The Eagles (12-15) battled back and were within two runs twice in the middle innings, but a four-run seventh by Lakeview blew the game open.

“Roller coaster,” said Hubbard coach John Schiraldi when asked to describe the 2021 baseball season. “We were left for dead a couple of times, and then we’d come back and win a couple in a row. We split with a lot of teams in our league, and our conference is good. Everybody will give you a game, top to bottom.

“… You’ve got to come to play. Sometimes when the bounces don’t go your way, or you don’t make plays, especially with a pitcher like (DeMonica) on the mound, you’re playing with fire.”

DeMonica was hot, indeed.

The senior Miami of Ohio recruit struck out 14 and allowed just two hits over six innings. He also went 2-for-4 at the plate with three RBIs, providing a fatal blow to the Eagles in the sixth inning. With Lakeview clinging to a 6-4 lead, he blasted a two-out, two-run double to center field that was a few feet short of a home run.

“He’s a first-team all-conference guy,” Schiraldi said. “He’s good. He’s one of the premier pitchers in the league. You saw what he can do in the first inning. If you give him a lead, you’re asking for trouble.”

Hubbard had its struggles from the start.

Starter Kobe Krisuk walked the first two batters, and DeMonica lined a run-scoring single to left for a 1-0 lead. After a sacrifice fly made it 2-0, Andrew McRoberts added a two-run single to finish the rally.

Krisuk settled in, however, and the Eagles battled back. After a single and a walk to start the third inning, they cut the score to 4-2 on a passed ball and two wild pitches. Lakeview (12-10) then went up 5-2, but Hubbard again pulled within two. The Bulldogs appeared to pull away with a three-run sixth inning to go up 8-3, but the Eagles weren’t done. They scored a run and loaded the bases with two outs, bringing the tying run to the plate in No. 3 hitter Evan Jarvis. DeMonica was able to secure his final strikeout to end the threat.

“I always feel pretty good with Nick on the mound,” Lakeview coach Mike Johnson said. “He’s our ace, and when he’s pitching, I’m pretty confident we’re going to win the game. It’s just that simple. Today, he was throwing strikes, he had command of his curveball, and he was just on. When he’s on, we’re usually going to win.”

The Bulldogs play at Howland on Wednesday at 5 p.m. in a sectional bracket final. They lost, 9-7, to Howland earlier in the year.

Hubbard says good-bye to 10 seniors after a wild season. The Eagles lost on walk-off hits seven different times and suffered three other one-run defeats. Schiraldi said missing out on the 2020 season was frustrating for him and a group he has been around for many years. That made the close losses in 2021 a little more irritating for the Eagles, but they never lost faith.

“You hate to end that way,” Schiraldi said. “… The one thing I can take from these guys is they won’t roll over and just quit. They’ll keep coming at people. We’ve been down in a lot of games and came back. We’ve had close games all year, and it’s just, some days you’re the hammer, some days you’re the nail.”