EMMITSBURG, Md. (March 12, 2021) – The bats were alive at E.T. Straw Family Stadium Friday afternoon. Both the Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers and Delaware State Hornets battled to a 9-9 tie before the Mount took the lead in the bottom of the seventh and rode that to a 13-11 win.
Catcher Thomas Bramley was key to the Mount's attack, going 2-for-3 with four RBI's, two runs scored and a homer. Ryan Haddaway secured a hit in every at-bat, and drove in two more. The Mount also saw home runs from Brady Drawbaugh and AJ Holcomb.
Ryan Ament pitched an inning's worth of scoreless relief to earn his first win as a collegiate player. Patrick Burke recorded his second save with two strikeouts – part of 12 on the day for the staff, led by starter Jordan Geber with eight.
The Mount stormed out to a 6-0 advantage in the first inning, punctuated by Bramley's round tripper. RBI's from Ryan Fisher, Vaughn Parker II and Haddaway set up the blast from the catcher. Delaware State countered with a pair in the second and a third in the third.
Drawbaugh's homer came in the fourth – a two run shot – with Holcomb's solo blast tacked on one inning later.
But the Hornets also brought the lumber, climbing back into the game with four bombs. Two of them were in back-to-back plate appearances from third baseman Trey Paige. The visitors managed to draw level in the seventh off an RBI single and a balk.
With one out after the stretch, the Mount drew a pair of free passes. Haddaway cashed in one run with a single up the middle and Bramley increased the lead to two with another single. Up stepped freshman Kai Cummings, who picked a good time to notch his first hit for the Mount. His fly ball followed the foul line before landing in fair territory for a double, scoring Haddaway and Bramley.
Delaware State challenged again in the eighth by plating two runs. They were stopped in their tracks when Burke was called from the bullpen. The closer crushed the rally before nullifying a ninth inning single with a double play.
Mount St. Mary's and DSU meet again Sunday (March 14) for a doubleheader, consisting of two seven inning games. First pitch is noon at E.T. Straw Family Stadium.
