ALFRED, N.Y. – No. 5 Hilbert erased a five-run deficit and rallied with six runs in the 8th to beat No. 1 Alfred State College in the opening game of the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference Championship tournament this afternoon.
The Hawks, 25-16, advance to the winner's bracket tomorrow and will face the winner of the 4:00 o'clock game today: No. 2 Penn State Behrend square off against Penn State Altoona. The loser of this night cap game will face Alfred State at 10:00 am tomorrow and the winner will challenge the Hawks in a 1:00 pm contest.
Coach Drew Fittry is excited about the win, but "we are focused on this weekend. We have a killer opportunity to do something special in the next 48 hours."
HOW IT HAPPENED
Brennen Hediger battled in a pitcher's duel with Alfred State early in the game. Both hurlers limited batters to just one hit through four innings of a scoreless game.
The Pioneers got on the board first off a stand-up triple in the 4th, and they added five additional runs in the 5th and 6th.
The Hawks pecked into the lead by scoring two runs in the 7th before taking the lead with six runs in the 8th.
Blaine Morgan (3-1) faced four batters in the 7th and handed the final two innings off to the new AMCC all-time league leader.
Brendan Walsh took the mound for the Hawks and closed the final two innings out with his 10th save of the season and 13th career.
Patrick Whelan walked, John Riviere-Vejas fielder's choice knocked Griffin McAndrews out at second base while Whelan advanced to third and Sebastian Gomez single to left center plated Whelan. Jack Duffek made contact and a fielding error by the Pioneer's second baseman allowed Riviere-Vejas a sprint home in the 7th.
Back-to-back hits by Whelan and Thomas Evans forced a pitch change and Riviere-Vejas RBI single scored Evans. Gomez then loaded the bases with a long hit to center field, setting the table for Jack Duffek 's 3RBI double to even the score, 6-6. With two outs, Alex Ellison hit to left center scored pinch runner Frank McCabe and the Pioneers swapped the arm on the mound for the second time in the 8th inning. Evans plated Ellison for the final run scored by either team.
BY THE NUMBERS
The Hawks continue to extend their season with single-season record performances.
Brendan Walsh continues to build on his record setting season. Besides setting a new AMCC single season save (10), he has also increased his appearances (21) and finishes (17).
Brennen Hediger tied the win record (5), and Michael Contini holds the starts record (12), with the anticipation he will extend that tomorrow.
Thomas Evans leads in slug% (.833), Runs (56), hits (63), home runs (12), total bases (125) and Patrick Whelan leads in RBI (54), triples (6), and hit by pitch (13).
Hilbert split their AMCC series with Penn State Behrend (W 6-2, L 8-3) and earned a pair of walk-off wins over Penn State Altoona during the regular season.
Up Next:
The AMCC Double Elimination Tournament continues tomorrow, Friday, May 12th:
Friday, May 12
10am - Game 3: Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2
1pm - Game 4: Hilbert College vs. Winner Game 2
4pm - Game 5: Winner Game 3 vs. Loser Game 4
Saturday, May 13
11am - Game 6: Winner Game 4 vs. Winner Game 5
2pm - Game 7 (if needed): Same as Game 6