COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – The Ursinus College baseball team saw a prime chance at a rare victory over DeSales slip through its fingers when the Bulldogs scored two runs in the seventh and five in the eighth to erase a five-run deficit and hang on for a 9-7 non-conference triumph on Thursday.
The big comeback denied the Bears (14-7) a chance at their first victory against DeSales since 1995, as the Bulldogs (8-8) won their sixth straight in the series and improved to 8-0-1 in the last nine meetings.
Senior Chris Jablonski and junior Austin Feuerman each homered and junior Vincent Terry went 4-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored for the Bears, who appeared set to end their long drought against DeSales after putting up seven unanswered runs.
That stretch began in the third, when Jablonski sent a line drive into the jet stream and over the wall in dead center for a three-run shot, his second home run in as many games. The left-hander's 13th career dinger, which followed consecutive bunt hits by Terry and junior Jake Banks, moved him into third in school history.
After spotting DeSales a two-run lead, freshman lefty David Drea settled down and stifled the visitors until a leadoff walk in the sixth forced him out. Sophomore Matt Radwanski cleaned up the rest of the inning, and the Bears looked to break it open with a four-run bottom half.
With two outs and runners on second and third, Terry blooped a single between the Bulldogs third baseman and hard-charging left fielder, scoring juniors Austin Kurey and Jose Colon to stretch the lead to 5-2. Pinch-hitting for Banks. Feuerman cranked a 1-2 pitch over the fence in right-center, a no-doubt bomb that put Ursinus up 7-2.
But the Bulldogs hit the comeback trail right away, getting two back in the seventh before going ahead for good with an eighth-inning outburst. The first three DeSales hitters singled to begin the frame and, after an RBI groundout cut the deficit to 7-6, Tyler Sweeney tied it with his fourth hit of the afternoon. After a walk, Jimmy Johnstone's liner to center delivered the winning run, and a throwing error allowed another Bulldog to cross home, making it 9-7.
The Bears put two on in the eighth and the leadoff man aboard in the ninth, but nothing came of either.
Sweeney was 4-for-4 with an RBI and three runs for DeSales. Tyler Cooperman pitched two scoreless innings of relief to earn the win, and Evan Fraser worked the ninth for his second save.
Terry marked a new career high and became the first Bear to record four hits in a game since junior Timo Muro had four against Swarthmore last April. He added a stolen base and several nice plays at shortstop. Banks finished 2-for-2 with a run.
Drea did not factor into the decision, allowing two runs on five hits with two walks and two strikeouts in five-plus frames. Junior Matt Chipego threw 1.2 scoreless innings in relief of freshman Mark LeDuc, who took the loss.
Jablonski batted leadoff for the first time this season.
Ursinus opens Centennial Conference play with a doubleheader against Gettysburg on Saturday, April 2. First pitch is set for 12:30 p.m. at Thomas Field.
