The Middlebury baseball team rallied from a 5-1 deficit with five runs over the next three frames, including a walk-off home run in Friday's 10th stanza from
Will Ashley, to claim a thrilling 6-5 NESCAC West triumph over Williams.
HIGHLIGHTS
- The hosts put runners on first and second with two outs in the initial inning, as Henry Ayers blooped a single into left field and Pablo Spielman-Rodriguez was hit by a pitch. Eph pitcher Matt Keene worked out of the jam with a strikeout.
- A stanza later, Dave Mosrie and Will Scott drew back-to-back walks with one away. Panther starter Emmet George buckled down and struck out the next two batters.
- The contest remained a pitcher's duel until Williams broke through in the sixth. Hank Jacobus started the frame with a liner that found space in left field. He moved up to second on a sacrifice bunt and third on a flyout before scoring on a double off the bat of Scott that tucked inside the left-field line. Christian Zebrowski came on in relief, striking out the ensuing hitter with runners on second and third to keep it a 1-0 contest.
- The navy and white knotted the contest in the bottom half. Joe Basso reached on a fielder's choice and scampered home on an Aiden Han triple that found the right-center gap.
- Williams exploded with four runs on four hits in the eighth, highlighted by a two-run homer by Scott that scraped the back of the wall in right center, building a 5-1 advantage.
- Middlebury answered with a single tally in the home half. Sam Gersch started the stanza with a triple to left and raced home on a sacrifice fly from Ayers to pull within three.
- Ryan Nakajima roped a one-out single to center in the ninth and later advanced to third with one out. Zebrowski closed the door with a groundout and strikeout.
- Middlebury mounted a two-out rally in their next trip through the lineup. Brian Olson walked and Andrew Baay bounced a base hit up the middle to begin the comeback. A pitch later, the pair came around to score when pinch hitter Forrest Nelson laced a double into the right-center gap. After a walk loaded the bases, pinch runner JD Collins knotted the game at 5-5 when Basso was hit by a pitch.
- The Ephs packed the bags in the visitors' portion of the 10th on a walk, single and a hit-by-pitch. Dylan Knightly squelched the chance, rallying from a 3-0 count with three consecutive strikes to punch out Nakajima.
- Reliever Nate Rosner recorded the first two outs, but Ashley blasted a 1-1 pitch over the center field wall to give the Panthers a thrilling 6-5 comeback triumph.
NOTES
- The roundtripper is Ashley's first this spring and the fifth of his career.
- Knightly became the program's career appearances leader, toeing the rubber for the 54th time to surpass the mark of 53 set by George Goldstein '22. He earned the win in relief, striking out a pair in his frame of work.
- Spielman-Rodriguez and Gersch each collected their second triple of the season.
- The programs met for the 142nd time in a series that began in 1901. Middlebury has won the last six contests.
The Panthers and the Ephs conclude the three-game series on Saturday with a doubleheader. The first pitch is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. Middlebury will also honor seniors Knightly and
Brayden Mathews before the first contest.
