BALTIMORE, Md. - The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps baseball team was one strike away from elimination, but senior
Blaise Heher doubled,
Keegan Cabrera had a pinch-hit RBI single to tie it, and
Dillon Martin drew a walk-off-walk in the tenth, capping off a wild first day of the Super Regionals on Friday, which saw the Stags split two 10-inning games with Johns Hopkins.
The Blue Jays won the first game 16-15 in 10 innings, with the Stags taking the nightcap 10-9 in 10 innings, as the series will conclude with a third game. The rubber game is tentatively scheduled for 4 p.m. on Saturday, but with rainy weather all day in the forecast, a Sunday start at 11 a.m. is a possibility as well.
CMS moves to 35-14 on the year, tying the program record for wins in a season, set last year. Johns Hopkins sees its record move to 37-10 after the extra inning split.
Brayden Thomas threw three-innings of one-hit relief with six strikeouts to get the win for the Stags in an outstanding performance under heavy pressure. The one hit was an RBI double in the top of the ninth, that put the Blue Jays ahead 9-8, but with two runners on, he came up with a big strikeout for the second out, and then got a pop up to Martin at shortstop to end the inning.
In the top of the ninth, Martin drew the first of his two key walks, but was still there with two outs, as Heher had an 0-2 count. With his career one pitch from potentially being over, Heher came through with a double down the left field line to move Martin to third. Cabrera had a pinch-hit single through the left side to plate Martin, although the Blue Jays were able to throw Heher out at the plate as the Stags tried to walk it off in nine.
Thomas then struck out the side in the tenth, around a two-out hit-by-pitch, to give the Stags another chance to walk it off.
Bryce Didrickson and
Alex Henderson drew two straight walks, and
Rider Gordon singled through the left side to lead the bases. Martin then drew a four-pitch walk to bring home Didrickson with the run to send the Super Regionals to a third and deciding game.
CMS was down 6-3 in the fifth, when Didrickson led off with a walk, and Henderson belted a two-run homer, tying the CMS record for home runs in a season with his 20th, matching the mark
Andrew Mazzone had two year ago. Two outs later,
Carter Bennett knotted things up with a solo shot.
Henderson had an RBI single in the sixth to give CMS a 7-6 lead, and after Johns Hopkins went back ahead 8-7,
Max Pemberton tied it with a clutch two-out solo homer. Henderson finished 4-for-5 with three RBI in the nightcap, and Didrickson drew four walks, scoring three runs.
The opening game had even more drama, as Didrickson had two of the five CMS homers, putting the Stags over 100 round-trippers in a season for the first time in program history. His second one put CMS ahead 15-14 in the top of the tenth, but the Blue Jays scored twice in the bottom half to take the win.
Bennett started the see-saw affair with a two-run double in the first, before Johns Hopkins forged ahead 5-4 after the third. Didrickson and
Rider Gordon each hit solo homers in the fourth, and Pemberton (solo) and
Josh Jacobs (two-run shot) each hit homers in the fifth to put CMS ahead 8-5.
The Blue Jays answered back with three homers of their own to go ahead 10-8 in the bottom of the fifth, and led 14-11 in the eighth, when the Stags had an RBI single from Pemberton, an RBI double from Heher and a sacrifice fly from Henderson to tie it 14-14. Johns Hopkins was able to load the bases with one out in the ninth, but
Jett Shue threw a runner out at the plate from third, and Martin snagged a liner at short to end the inning.
Pemberton was 3-for-5 with four RBI in the opener, Didrickson was 3-for-5 with two homers, and Heher was 3-for-5 with two RBI.
CMS advanced to the Super Regionals for the first time ever a year ago, falling in two games to Endicott, and this year, has advanced one game further. The Stags will try to advance one more round with another win, and make their first ever appearance at nationals.
