MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. | Florida Memorial's final home series of the season begins with a tight 5-3 loss to Fort Lauderdale. The Lions held an early lead before the Eagles bounced back to take the win in a close battle that never separated further than three runs between the teams.

FMU kicked off scoring with an Alejandro Fernandez walk that scored speedster Pheron Charlton in the bottom of the first inning. The Lions added an additional run in the inning, walking Ivan Zambrano from third to home, to take an early 2-0 lead. Fort Lauderdale answered with three runs in the top of the fourth to take the lead from FMU by a single run. The Eagles added a pair of runs in the top of the seventh to extend their lead, however a Nathan Harris sacrifice-RBI scored senior Raymond Rivera in the bottom of the inning to close the gap to two runs. Ultimately the Lions would leave two on base in the bottom of the ninth as they fell 5-3 to Fort Lauderdale in game one of the series.

Boynton Beach native Max Charnin (3-4) was credited with the loss allowing eight hits and three earned runs while striking out five Eagles in 5.2 innings on the mound. Senior Ricardo Alvarez de Lugo rounded out the pitching duo for the Lions, allowing three hits and two earned runs in the final 3.2 innings.

The loss drops FMU to 16-21 on the year as they take a break from conference play.

The Lions return to action Friday, April 19, for the doubleheader against Fort Lauderdale. First pitch is scheduled for 11 a.m. at Harry T. Moore Baseball Field.