MERION STATION, Pa. – A wild pitch in the bottom of the 10^th inning brought home the winning run as the Saint Joseph's baseball team beat Seton Hall, 10-9, at Smithson Field on Friday afternoon.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
• Saint Joseph's (4-8) took the lead in the bottom of the second.  Aidan Duda walked before Dean Bergmann and Michael Pierson hit one-out singles; Joey Gale followed with a single of his own to score a pair and give the Hawks the lead.  A failed pickoff by Daniel Frontera then led to a third run to extend the Hawk lead.
 
• The Pirates got one back in the third on an RBI single by Aiden Robbins, but the Hawks answered in the bottom of the frame after Tim Dickinson was hit by a pitch, stole second, and eventually came in to score on a single by Duda.
 
• Magnus Krieger singled in another run for the visitors in the fourth, but the Hawks opened things up in the bottom of the fifth.  Sam Meyer walked to start the inning before Duda was hit by a pitch.  After a fly ball advanced Meyer to third, he came in to score on a single by Pierson.  Gale then singled to load the bases for Alex Kelsey, who ripped the first pitch he saw from reliever Steven Svenson through the right side for a two-run single and a 7-2 SJU lead.
 
• Seton Hall (4-8) began its comeback in the top of the eighth on an RBI groundout and a fielding error that cut the margin to three.  In the ninth, the Pirates got back within a pair on a solo home run by AJ Soldra before a double, a hit batter, and an error made it a 7-6 game.  A Kevin Milewski two-run double and an RBI double by Frankie Scrivanic then gave the visitors a 9-7 lead heading to the bottom of the ninth.
 
• Meyer led off the ninth with a single before Duda was hit for a second time and made way for pinch runner Colin Myers.  Bergmann then ripped a double down the left field line to score Meyer and get the Hawks within a run, leaving the tying run 90 feet away and the winning run on second with nobody out.  Two batters later, Gale hit a sacrifice fly to score Myers and tie the game.
 
• The Pirates put two on with one out in the 10^th, but Jaden Ovalles induced a double play to escape the inning.  Carson Applegate and Dickinson kicked off the bottom of the stanza with singles before a passed ball moved them up a base each.  After an intentional walk to Owen Petrich loaded the bases, Meyer hit into a fielder's choice for the first out of the inning.  Jordan Marot then uncorked a pitch that went over the head of Milewski behind the plate, allowing Dickinson to scamper home with the winning run.
 
BEHIND THE BOX SCORE
• Ovalles threw a shutout inning of relief for his first collegiate victory, while Marot took the loss in a third of an inning of work.
 
• Frank Ciccone was strong for the Hawks in a no decision, allowing two runs on four hits in six innings, striking out five.  Frontera started for the Pirates and was charged with four runs on four hits in three innings.
 
• Pierson was 3-for-5 with two runs scored and a run batted in on Friday, while Gale went 2-for-3 with three RBI.  Bergmann also had a multi-hit day while Kelsey drove in a pair.
 
• Every Hawk in the starting lineup reached base safely in the game as the Hawks matched their season high of 12 hits on the day.
 
UP NEXT
The teams meet again on Saturday at Smithson Field.  First pitch is set for 1:00 p.m.