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Box Score
Photo Montage
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Rose-Hulman celebrates a
dramatic win that
lifted the Engineers to 4-0 in HCAC play. |
TERRE HAUTE, IND. – Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
scored three times in the ninth inning and improved to 4-0 in league play with a
dramatic 10-9 victory over Franklin College on Tuesday at Art Nehf Field.
Franklin scored a
pair of runs to take a 9-7 lead into the bottom of the ninth frame.
Freshman Chandler Kent (Antioch, Ill.) opened the frame with a single,
then advanced to second when senior Matt Pepelea (Terre Haute/South)
reached base on a fielding error with one out.
Two batters later,
senior Kellen Hurst (Noblesville) doubled down the right field line to
score Kent and bring the Engineers within 9-8.
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Kellen Hurst crosses the
plate with the
winning run as Matt Pepelea celebrates. |
Freshman pinch hitter
Kirk Thompson (Harrisburg, Ill.) followed with a slow rolling ground ball
to third base that was thrown into the dirt by Franklin's Derek Smith, allowing
Pepelea to score the tying run and Hurst to cross with the game winning score.
"This was a well
pitched game early, and neither team was willing to give up late. I'm
proud of the way our hitters battled and came through when we needed it most,"
said Rose-Hulman head coach Jeff Jenkins.
The game was a
pitcher's duel early and a slugfest in the late innings. Freshman Derek
Eitel (Marshall, Ill.) kept the Engineers within striking distance with six
strong innings and three earned runs allowed, while Andy Clark of Franklin
scattered seven hits and allowed four runs in six innings of work.
Then the offenses
took over. With the score tied 4-4 after innings, both squads scored twice
in the seventh to knot the game at 6-6. Each team scored once in the
eighth to make the score 7-7. Franklin then scored twice in the ninth,
before the three-run Engineer rally capped the victory.
"Franklin will battle
for one of the top spots in the league this year. We needed to win on our
home field and that makes this an even bigger win," said Jenkins.
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Sam Deters battled a tough
Franklin lineup to earn the win. |
Pepelea led the
Rose-Hulman offense with a three-run home run, two runs scored and a pair of
hits. Kent finished 2-4 with one run scored and one RBI, while Hurst added
two hits, two runs and a double.
Other Engineers with
multiple hits included senior Matt Salisbury (Fort Wayne/Homestead) with
two singles and one run scored, and senior Josh Nash (Elizabethtown,
Ky./Central Hardin) with two hits and two runs scored.
The Franklin offense
featured four hits and a two-run home run from Jim Swienconek. Lance Noel
added two hits and three RBIs for a 13-hit attack from a Franklin squad that
dropped to 9-5 on the season.
Rose-Hulman improved
to 10-6 on the season and 4-0 in conference play, while Franklin stands 9-5 and
0-1 in league games. The Engineers host defending regular season league
champion Manchester College in a three-game series starting Friday night at Art
Nehf Field. |
