SELINSGROVE, PA (April 23, 2023) – The Susquehanna baseball team took to Harold Bollinger Field on Sunday afternoon for their third game of the weekend series against Juniata and also to celebrate Senior Day. They memorialized the occasion in style, pulling off a series sweep with a walk-off 9-8 win.
After a quiet 1st inning, the River Hawks unleashed an onslaught in the bottom of the 2nd, putting five runs on the board with three hits and three walks. They would also steal four bases in the inning, four of the whopping nine total stolen bases that SU tallied in the game.
The Eagles responded in the next inning, helped by two walks and two fielding errors from SU, plating two runs. They added one more in the top of the 4th on an RBI single, making the score 5-3. The pitchers and defenses clamped down for the next three innings, keeping the score where it was until the 8th, when Juniata tallied a five-run inning of their own. Two hits, three walks, four wild pitches, and two fielding errors all helped the Eagles take their first lead of the day, ending the inning on the winning end of an 8-5 scoreline.
After five straight scoreless innings for SU, falling behind galvanized the offense, and they would score two runs in the bottom of the 8th to cut the lead to one. Jack Cahill started the frame with a pinch-hit single, advancing to second after Camryn Eberly hit a single of his own. With two outs on the board, Kris Morrow came up with a single to left field that brought Cahill home. Tony Rossi followed that with an RBI single of his own, scoring Eberly. The inning ultimately ended with the bases still loaded for the River Hawks. Nathan Dawes took the mound in the top of the 9th and kept the gap to just one run after sitting down the Eagles' batters in order, giving Susquehanna the opportunity to try and tie or win the game in the bottom of the 9th.
And they would indeed do both, tying the game on an RBI single from Dylan Heyduk. Eberly followed with a walk, and the two would advance to second and third base on a wild pitch. Sean McCulloch would then be intentionally walked to load the bases and set up a potential inning-ending double play with one out on the board. The plan nearly came to fruition, as Morrow hit a grounder to the shortstop. McCulloch would be out at second, but Morrow dug it out down the first base line, sliding into first to get the crucial safe call, allowing Heyduk to score the game-winning run.
Morrow and Heyduk were crucial at the plate, being the only two SU hitters to have multi-hit games. Morrow had two hits in six at-bats, earning a game-high four RBIs, while Heyduk was 2 for 5 and picked up two RBIs, also scoring two runs. The lineup also drew nine walks on the day. Dawes earned his first win of the season after his shutdown inning in the 9th.
Now 19-15 overall and 7-7 in the Landmark Conference, the River Hawks have a firm hold over fourth place in the conference and look well-positioned for a spot in the playoffs. They could still reach as high as second place, pending other results around the Landmark. They'll take a break from the conference for their next game, hosting Misericordia University on Wednesday, April 26 for a non-conference tilt, beginning at 4 pm. Their final conference series will see them travel to face Drew next weekend.
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--RIVER HAWKS--
