HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Haverford College baseball team dropped a pitchers' duel to No. 3 Rowan on Tuesday afternoon, falling 2-0 despite six strikeouts in 6.2 innings for sophomore Luke Duris (1-2). Haverford couldn't solve Andrew Cartier (2-0) as the Profs hurler struck out eight and allowed just three hits in seven innings of work. The Fords held Rowan to their lowest run total of the 2018 season thus far.
The Profs, ranked No. 1 in the American Baseball Coaches Association poll, had an early shot to plate a run against Duris in the top of the second inning. With two outs, Kyle Golla singled up the middle and Steven Hewa reached on a fielding error, with Golla advancing to third. With Justin Provost at the plate, Golla made a break towards home on what appeared to be a wild pitch, but was thrown out as quick thinking from Ben Somorjai helped start a rundown to end the inning with no damage done.
Cartier and Duris swapped scoreless frames through five. Ben Furlong singled and advanced into scoring position with a wild pitch in the bottom of the second, but was stranded as Luke Wallis flew out ahead of a Will Karp strikeout.
In the fourth and fifth, each pitcher breezed through a pair of 1-2-3 innings before Rowan struck against Duris in the top of the sixth. Shawn Leydon roped a one-out double into the left center field gap and Alex Kokos followed with a double down the right field line, plating Leydon for the first run of the game. Monny Strickland then tapped a single to center, scoring Kokos as the Profs found themselves in the lead at 2-0.
Haverford had its best scoring chance of the afternoon in Cartier's final frame. Ethan Lee-Tyson doubled down the left field line to open the seventh inning and Spencer Sohmer drilled a single to left field, advancing Lee-Tyson to third. Sam Partee lined out to right field and Cartier induced a 5-4-3 double play, ending the Haverford threat.
The Fords could not get anything going in the final two innings against reliever Jeremy Dyzenhaus, who nailed down a six-out save, his second of the season.
Tom Phillips was a standout in relief for the Fords, tossing the final 2.1 innings, allowing just one hit and one walk and striking out three.
The Fords will be back in action with a matinee game tomorrow at No. 17 TCNJ. First pitch in Ewing, N.J. is slated for 3:30 p.m.