For five innings, Ursinus controlled everything that mattered.
Runs. Tempo. The game.
And then, in the span of a single inning, it was gone.
Top-seeded Johns Hopkins erupted for six runs in the sixth inning Thursday afternoon, turning a five-run deficit into an 8-7 comeback victory over Ursinus in Centennial Conference tournament contest at Babb Field.
For Ursinus, it was a loss that will linger — not because of how it started, but because of how firmly it was in their hands.
The Bears (23-17-1) built the game exactly the way a lower seed needs to.
They scored twice in the first inning, manufacturing runs with situational hitting, then delivered the first decisive blow in the third when Brett Barrett launched a three-run home run to right field, pushing the lead to 5-1.
Barrett finished with four RBIs, anchoring an offense that produced 11 hits and consistently pressured Hopkins starter Kieren Collins.
Ursinus wasn’t done.
In the sixth, Matthew Callahan delivered a two-run single, stretching the lead to 7-2 and putting the Bears 12 outs away from a statement win over the tournament’s top seed.
Then the inning that changed everything arrived.
Johns Hopkins (31-9) began its rally with a solo home run from Clay Hartje. A single followed. Then a double. Then another hit. And another.
Five consecutive hits flipped the inning.
Luke Baker’s two-run double cut the lead to one. Alex Shane followed with a triple to tie the game. Moments later, William Juan drove in the go-ahead run with a double — the fifth straight hit of the inning — to complete the six-run surge.
In a matter of minutes, a 7-2 advantage became an 8-7 deficit.
For Ursinus, there was little margin left.
The Bears managed just one baserunner over the final three innings as Collins (6-0) settled in after a difficult start, retiring six straight hitters across the seventh and eighth innings.
Dylan Zucker closed it out in the ninth, striking out the final two batters to secure his eighth save.
Lost in the final result was how well Ursinus had played for much of the afternoon.
Luke Kopec reached base twice and scored two runs. Matthew Callahan drove in a pair. Jamie O’Neill added an RBI double as part of a balanced offensive effort that had Hopkins on its heels early.
Even after surrendering the lead, the Bears’ pitching stabilized. Brett Mutz delivered two scoreless innings out of the bullpen to keep the deficit at one and give Ursinus a chance late.
But the sixth inning proved too much to overcome.
Now, the path becomes more difficult.
Ursinus moves into an elimination game Saturday against Washington College, needing a win to extend its season.
And while the box score will show a one-run loss, the reality is more complicated.
For five innings, the Bears showed they could play with — and beat — the top seed in the conference.
For one inning, they couldn’t stop the momentum.
And in tournament baseball, sometimes that’s the difference between advancing… and starting over.
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