Saint Joseph's
You want wild? You want weird? You want a baseball game that had everything but a bullpen cart running out of gas in the middle of the field? Saint Joseph’s and Penn put on a Liberty Bell Classic quarterfinal for the ages on Tuesday at Tommy Lasorda Field at Meiklejohn Stadium. And when the dust settled, after an eight-run deficit, a three-HBP performance, and an ending called by darkness, it was the Hawks who pulled off a 14-10 stunner.

Trailing 8-2. Then 10-4. Saint Joseph’s (9-14) could have called it a day. But instead, they put together two innings of chaos, scoring four in the seventh and six in the eighth to shock the Quakers (8-10) and punch their ticket to the semifinals.

So how did this happen?

Well, it all started the way most great comebacks do—with a slow burn. Carson Applegate got things rolling early with a two-run homer in the first, putting Saint Joe’s up 2-0. But that lead? It disappeared faster than a bag of soft pretzels at a Phillies tailgate.

Penn answered in the third with a grand slam from Ryan Taylor, part of an eight-run explosion that saw 12 Quakers step to the plate. They piled on two more in the fourth, stretching the lead to 10-4 and leaving Saint Joe’s looking for answers.

And then? The rally.

The Hawks chipped away in the seventh, taking advantage of an error, two walks, and a hit batsman. Colin Myers came through with a two-run single to cut the deficit to 10-8.

Then came the eighth—an inning that felt like it might never end. Saint Joe’s batted around again, tying the game on a bases-loaded walk and a hit-by-pitch. Another walk put them ahead before a sac fly and a two-run single from Owen Petrich blew it open at 14-10.

Penn tried to muster a response, putting two on in the bottom of the eighth, but Luke Parise shut the door with a fielder’s choice and a strikeout. And then, before anyone could get too comfortable, the umpires called it due to darkness. Because of course they did.

Behind the Box Score:
  • Record books, meet Joey Gale. The sophomore outfielder got plunked three times, tying the program’s single-game record.
  • Colin Myers was the guy. Three hits. Five RBIs. Just another day at the office.
  • Jackson Campbell gets the win. And how about this? His seventh inning was the only 1-2-3 frame of the game.
  • Saint Joseph's walked 11 times. Penn pitchers, on the other hand, hit four batters. That’s 15 free passes!
Saint Joseph's moves on to face Delaware in the semifinals of the Liberty Bell Classic, with a trip to Citizens Bank Park on the line. But first, a weekend road trip to VCU for an Atlantic 10 showdown.

Penn, meanwhile, will need a few days to process this one. Because, let’s be honest, how do you even explain it? The Quakers will face Dartmouth this weekend. 

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