MERION STATION, Pa. – A ninth-inning rally tied the game, but the Saint Joseph's baseball team ultimately fell to Monmouth, 7-5, in 10 innings at Smithson Field on Friday afternoon.
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HOW IT HAPPENED
• Neither team tallied until the third, when Monmouth (4-9) scored three runs to take the lead. The Hawks answered in the bottom of the frame on an RBI single by
Conlan Wall.
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Ryan Picollo then got the Hawks back within one on a solo home run in the fourth.
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• The visitors extended the lead with single tallies in the sixth and seventh to make it a 5-2 game.
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• Saint Joseph's (6-9) got back into the game in the eighth as Picollo came in to score on a wild pitch.
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• Wall made a diving catch in the top of the ninth to help keep the deficit at two before SJU tied things up in the bottom of the inning.Â
Luke Zimmerman led off with a walk and moved to third on a single by
Brandon Drapeau.Â
Max Hitman followed with an RBI single to cut the deficit to 5-4 and leave pinch runner
Joey Gale on third with nobody out.
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Tim Dickinson followed with a pinch-hit sacrifice fly to score Gale and tie the game. Wall then singled to move the winning run to second; a fly ball would later push Hitman to third, but Monmouth's Derek Benzinger was able to escape the jam and send the game to extra innings.
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• Monmouth would score a pair of two-out runs in the top of the 10
th before Benzinger retired the side in order in the bottom of the inning to end the game.
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BEHIND THE BOX SCORE
• Benzinger improved to 1-1 with the win, allowing one hit in two shutout innings of relief.Â
Matt McShane worked the 10
th for SJU, taking the loss to fall to 0-2.
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• Neither starter figured into the decision, as
Will McCausland allowed three runs in four and two-thirds innings for SJU while Drew Helmstetter allowed two runs in five innings for Monmouth.
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Ryan Weingartner was 3-for-5 with three doubles on the day, matching a program-high for doubles in a game. Hitman recorded three hits as well, while Wall notched a pair of his own.
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UP NEXT
The middle game of the weekend series is set for 2:00 p.m. Saturday at Smithson Field.
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