The Emory Baseball program concluded its weekend sweep of Brandeis University by outscoring the Judges 22-11 across the final two games of the series Sunday afternoon in Waltham.
With the four-game sweep, the Eagles keep pace in the University Athletic Association race with two series remaining as Emory stands 8-4 in conference play and 22-10 overall. With the weekend skid, Brandeis falls to 10-20 on the season and 2-10 in league play.
Game 1: Emory 11, Brandeis 1 (6 innings)
After being held scoreless through three innings to start the chilly morning in Waltham, the Eagles heated up across the final three innings scoring at least twice in all three frames on their way to the mercy rule win.
Seniors Matthew Sicoli and Jack Halloran each recorded two RBI singles in Emory's four-run fourth inning as the Eagles erased a 1-0 deficit. Classmate Brok Liu added to the scoring in the fifth, plating sophomore Aidan Conley with a single for one of the two runs in the inning.
Emory's big inning at the plate came in the sixth when the Eagles batted around the lineup to score five times and put the game in mercy rule territory. Conley had the key hit in the onslaught with a two-run double before junior Zach Wasserlauf, sophomore Zach Hanson and Sicoli all followed by driving in runs to build Emory's 10-run advantage.
Junior Adam Geller was flawless on the mound as he twirled his second complete game of the season. Through six innings, Geller allowed one run on six hits while striking out four. He threw just 65 pitches and did not walk a batter.
Game 2: Emory 11, Brandeis 10
Once again, the Emory bats were silenced in the early stages of the game as Brandeis held a 4-0 lead through three innings.
However, the Eagles started to show life as the game moved to the later innings as Emory found the scoreboard with two in the fourth and one in the fifth to slash the Judges lead to 4-3. Liu and Hanson both registered RBI hits in the fourth before the Eagles capitalized on a Brandeis error in the fifth.
Entering the final inning of a scheduled seven-inning affair, the Eagles found themselves down to their final opportunity and looked to cash in on another last-ditch rally of the weekend.
The Eagles demonstrated tremendous fight by scoring eight times to open up a 11-4 lead. Hanson put the Eagles on top with his RBI single to center prior to Conley and Sicoli doubling the Emory edge with a hit-by-pitch and sac fly. Junior Cam Newell added to the scoring with a single up the middle, his first hit of the season, and drove in two.
Leading by seven, the Judges also showed fight of the own as they scored six in their last chance at the plate, including a grand slam to cut the Emory lead to 11-10 with one out in the inning. However, sophomore Nick Stellabotte was able to settle down and retire two of the four batters he faced to seal the win for the Eagles.
Emory will be back in Atlanta for the first time this month next weekend as the Eagles host current UAA-leader, University of Chicago, in a pivotal conference series. First game of the four-game set is scheduled to get underway at 3:00 PM on Friday, April 18th at Chappell Park.
