After the first day of NCAA Division II North Atlantic Regional, West Virginia State finds itself in a familiar - albeit uncomfortable - position.

Shippensburg's Tim Freshour tossed a complete-game four-hitter Thursday in Johnstown, Pa., to lead the Raiders past State 10-2, sending the Jackets into the elimination bracket. State, the West Virginia Conference champion and No. 2 seed in the region, takes on No. 5 Kutztown at 11 a.m. today.

The Jackets are no strangers to having their backs to the wall. Just last weekend at this same site, State dropped its first game in the WVC tournament only to bounce back and win four straight to wrap up the title.

"That's been our modus operandi all year," State coach Cal Bailey said of his team's precarious position. "I told them after the game, you have to learn to deal with adversity and create adversity in the other team. That's half the battle."

Freshour certainly created problems for State hitters. The Johnstown native kept the Jackets guessing with a collection of off-speed pitches, striking out seven and walking just two. He retired 10 of the final 11 batters he faced.

Bailey said he thought Shippensburg would start hard-throwing Matt Wright, who shut down the Jackets in last year's regional, and his team struggled to adjust to the difference in styles.

"The kid from Shippensburg was not Matt Wright," said Bailey. "His whole game was frustration and we fell right into it. The boys all along thought it was going to be Wright and then when it wasn't Wright, they couldn't figure out how to hit it. Freshour gave us a big dose of frustration."

The Raiders jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning and sealed the win with four more in the ninth. First baseman Kevin Scholly went 3-for-5 with three runs batted in, while Tyler Redick and Kasey Kuhns drove in a pair of runs apiece. Seven of the nine batters in the Shippensburg lineup had at least two hits.

After the first day of NCAA Division II North Atlantic Regional, West Virginia State finds itself in a familiar - albeit uncomfortable - position.

Shippensburg's Tim Freshour tossed a complete-game four-hitter Thursday in Johnstown, Pa., to lead the Raiders past State 10-2, sending the Jackets into the elimination bracket. State, the West Virginia Conference champion and No. 2 seed in the region, takes on No. 5 Kutztown at 11 a.m. today.

The Jackets are no strangers to having their backs to the wall. Just last weekend at this same site, State dropped its first game in the WVC tournament only to bounce back and win four straight to wrap up the title.

"That's been our modus operandi all year," State coach Cal Bailey said of his team's precarious position. "I told them after the game, you have to learn to deal with adversity and create adversity in the other team. That's half the battle."

Freshour certainly created problems for State hitters. The Johnstown native kept the Jackets guessing with a collection of off-speed pitches, striking out seven and walking just two. He retired 10 of the final 11 batters he faced.

Bailey said he thought Shippensburg would start hard-throwing Matt Wright, who shut down the Jackets in last year's regional, and his team struggled to adjust to the difference in styles.

"The kid from Shippensburg was not Matt Wright," said Bailey. "His whole game was frustration and we fell right into it. The boys all along thought it was going to be Wright and then when it wasn't Wright, they couldn't figure out how to hit it. Freshour gave us a big dose of frustration."

The Raiders jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning and sealed the win with four more in the ninth. First baseman Kevin Scholly went 3-for-5 with three runs batted in, while Tyler Redick and Kasey Kuhns drove in a pair of runs apiece. Seven of the nine batters in the Shippensburg lineup had at least two hits.

J.D. Broderick's sacrifice fly scored Eric Workman in the bottom of the first for State's first run. Michael Deleeuw had the biggest hit against Freshour, a solo home run with two out in the sixth inning that cut the Jackets' deficit to 5-2.

Todd McQuistion (8-2) started and took the loss, allowing 11 hits and six runs in seven innings. After a rough start, the junior settled down and kept the Jackets in the game.

"He pitched well enough for us to win," Bailey said of his starter. "The difference was, Todd was a little too fired up early on and got the ball up. It was just one of those 10-2 poundings that was hard to take because [Freshour] wasn't overpowering us."

State lost its first game in last year's regional tournament but was unable to recover and was sent home after two games. The Jackets will start Travis McGrath (7-3, 2.59 ERA) today against Kutztown, and Bailey is hoping to avoid a repeat performance this time around.

"We've still got a chance to play five games this weekend," he said, "and if we're lucky enough to get there, we'll be a heck of a lot better than we are right now."

In Thursday's first game, top seed West Chester pulled out a 5-3 win over Kutztown. WVC foes Concord and Pitt Johntsown, the Nos. 3 and 4 seeds, respectively, were scheduled to meet in Thursday night's final game.

To contact staff writer Jeff Rider, use e-mail or call 348-5122.