Ben Furlong, Haverford
MOOSIC, Pa. - The Haverford College baseball team refused to surrender to top-seeded No. 24 Misericordia Thursday on PNC Field. In an elimination game, the Fords rallied late in the ninth inning to tie the game before shortstop Ben Furlong drove in the walk-off game-winner in the tenth to give Haverford the 7-6 win.
The Fords trailed 6-4 heading into the bottom of the ninth. Zach Taylor led off the inning with a single and then advanced to second a wild pitch. Two batters later, Yannick Villanueva hit an infield single that tied up the Cougars' shortstop. The next batter, Matt Goss, singled to center to drive in Taylor and make it a one run game with one out. The base hit also advanced Jared Turner, who was pinch running for Villanueva, to second. Ethan Lee-Tyson then loaded the bases when he reached on an error. With the bases juiced, Ben Verducci legged out a fielder's choice to second to score Jared Turner for the game-tying run.
In the top of the tenth, relief pitcher George Hatamiya, who was on the mound when the Fords won the Centennial Conference Championship, walked the leadoff batter but then ran through the next three to give Haverford the opportunity to win it in the bottom of the inning.
Spencer Sohmer led off with a single and Sam Partee, who hit a home run earlier, walked to give the Fords two men on. With two outs, Furlong turned on a pitch to right field, scoring Sohmer to give Haverford the win and keep its season alive.
Earlier in the game, the Fords scored four runs in the fourth inning including Partee's two-run shot and RBI base hits by Villanueva and Furlong.
Furlong finished the game 2-for-5 including a triple with two RBI and a run scored. Villanueva was 3-for-4. Sohmer and Partee had two hits apiece.
Justin Herring drew the start for Haverford but had to come out less an inning into the game. In relief, Grant Finn stepped up to throw 5.2 innings. Hatamiya earned the win after tossing 3.2 scoreless innings.
With Haverford's win, top-seeded Misericordia's season is over. Next, the Fords will play Kean. Kean lost to St. John Fisher in the second winner's game on Thursday. That game will be played at 1:15 p.m. on Friday.
Jake Enterlin, Johns Hopkins
Game Information:
Score: St. Joseph’s (NY)-3, Johns Hopkins-0
Records: St. Joseph’s (NY) (25-12), Johns Hopkins (28-15-2)
Location: Ross Memorial Park – Washington, PA
Time of Game: 1:48
Weather: Mostly Sunny, Low 60s, Perfect
Attendance: 155
Pitchers of Record: W – Ryan Aloise (8-2), L – Jake Enterlin (6-1)
The Short Story: Ryan Aloise scattered five hits over nine innings and never allowed a Johns Hopkins runner to reach third base as St. Joseph’s (NY) topped the Blue Jays, 3-0, in an elimination game at the NCAA Division III Mideast Regional Baseball Tournament Thursday afternoon.
The Golden Eagles improve to 25-12 and advance to play the loser of the TCNJ/LaRoche game on Friday at 10 am. Johns Hopkins saw its season end with a 28-15-2 record.
The Golden Eagles got all the offense they would need in a three-run fifth inning. Back-to-back singles by Dan Campanelli and Ryan Walsh were followed by a sacrifice bunt and then a two-run triple to right by Anthony Bonilla. Bonilla then came around to score on an RBI-single by Brendan Sullivan to give St. Joseph’s the 3-0 lead.
The three runs were more than enough for Aloise, who retired the first two batters he faced in seven of the nine innings and allowed just two Blue Jay runners to reach second base. He struck out three and walked two in his second complete game of the season.
The Blue Jays did threaten in the ninth as an inning-opening walk was later followed by a two-out single from Alex Darwiche to bring the potential tying run to the plate in Zach Jaffe. Aloise induced a Jaffe fly ball to center to end the game and send the Golden Eagles into the next round.
Head Coach Bob Babb on Aloise’s Performance Against the Blue Jays
“You have to give him credit – he did an excellent job of finding his spots and throwing strikes. He really did a great job of shutting us down and that hadn’t happened too often this year.”
Team Leaders
Johns Hopkins
Hits: Five with (1)
Runs: None
RBI: None
SB: None
Strikeouts: Jake Enterlin (3)
St. Joseph’s (NY)
Hits: Three with (2)
Runs: Three with (1)
RBI: Anthony Bonilla (2)
SB: Lynn (1)
Strikeouts: Ryan Aloise (2)
The Facts:
- Johns Hopkins suffered just its fifth loss in an NCAA Regional elimination game since 2008. The Blue Jays are now 15-5 in elimination games since then.
- The Blue Jays had won their second game at an NCAA Regional eight straight times before today’s loss.