Box Score Emory University sophomore designated hitter Brian Hernandez capped off a wild game on Sunday with a ninth-inning two-out single that drove in junior second baseman Dylan Eisner and broke a tie with LaGrange College, giving the 26th-ranked Eagles a 9-8 win over the Panthers.
Hernandez finished the game three-for-three with two walks and two RBIs, including the game-winning hit in the ninth. Eisner started the inning with a single, and moved to second on a one-out walk to freshman catcher Mitch Kerner. After LaGrange pitcher Tyler Brooks got the second out of the inning on a fly out, Hernandez singled up the middle on a 2-1 pitch, scoring Eisner from second base and giving Emory the win.
Emory claimed its third-straight win, improving to 16-9 on the year. LaGrange dropped to 10-15 with the loss.
Emory junior Paul Merolla started the game and allowed just two hits through the first five innings, but ran into trouble in the top of the sixth, surrendering five runs in the frame.
The score remained 5-0 until the bottom of the seventh, when Emory broke out for an eight-run inning to take the lead. The Eagles started the scoring with a pair of two-RBI pinch hits, with Wilson Morgan doubling in two, and Jordan Selbach following with a two-run triple. Eisner then drove in the game tying run with a base hit, with Philip Maldari adding a two-run double and Hernandez plating a run on a base hit.
LaGrange would bounce back though, cutting the lead to 8-6 with a run in the top of the eighth, and tying the contest in the ninth with a pair of runs, including a game-tying RBI single with two outs from James Poropatic. Emory would bounce back in the bottom of the frame though, claiming the win on Hernandez's hit.
Sophomore Kyle Monk earned the win for the Eagles, improving to 1-1 on the year. Brooks took the loss for the Panthers, dropping to 1-3.
The Eagles will be back in action on Tuesday, March 31st, traveling to Birmingham, Alabama for a key in-region matchup at Birmingham-Southern College, ranked fourth in the latest ABCA poll. The first pitch is scheduled for 7:00 pm ET.
