ALLENTOWN, Pa. – Haverford College baseball sent 11 batters to the plate in a five-run first inning and then fought off host Muhlenberg College for a wild 11-6 win in a Centennial Conference game Wednesday afternoon at Cedarcreek Field.
With one out in the opening frame, Haverford (20-4, 5-2 CC) loaded the bases without the benefit of a hit. Jake Chaplin started things off by getting hit by a pitch. Charlie Carluccio and Jeff Butera followed with walks. Mike Galetta and Jeremy Zoll each recorded RBI singles to put the Fords ahead 2-0. Bobby Bailey drew a bases-loaded walk for the third run. Joey Coulter added a two-out RBI single. Louis DeRosa, the 10th batter of the inning, brought in the final run with another bases-loaded walk.
After allowing Muhlenberg (6-19, 3-4 CC) to get on the board in the third, Haverford answered in the fifth with two runs to open up a 7-1 lead. In that fifth inning, DeRosa and Chaplin both hit one-out RBI singles.
The Mules tighten the contest up with three runs their half of the fifth and two more in the sixth. After a pair of errors and a walk to load the bases in the fifth, Muhlenberg's Jesse Nusbaum brought in two runs with a single up the middle. Bobby Spindler added the third run with a two-out single. In the sixth, John Scuderi and John Muha had RBI singles.
The Fords pulled away with two runs on extra bases hits in the eighth. Zoll had a RBI double and Matt Liscovitz connected for his triple, his third of the year, to drive in a run. Just to be safe, Haverford scored two more runs in the ninth inning.
Chaplin and Zoll led the Fords 16-hit attack with three hits apiece. Carluccio, Butera, Galetta and Liscovitz all added two hits. Zoll and DeRosa drove in two runs.
Joseph Vila, Nusbaum, Scuderi and Spindler had two-hit games for the Mules, who had 12 total hits.
Bryan Henrick earned the victory in relief for the Fords (4-1). He pitched 2.1 scoreless innings, fanning three hitters. Starter Dan Hochberg went the opening 4.2 innings. Hochberg allowed four runs – just one earned – on seven hits and struck out three.
Muhlenberg's Jason Daniels took the loss (1-6). He went one inning and gave up five runs on three hits and four walks.
Haverford and Muhlenberg will get a day off before having the rematch on Friday, April 8 at Class of '16 Field starting at 3:30 p.m.