FORT MYERS, Fla. – On the final day of the Gene Cusic Collegiate Classic, the Haverford College baseball team (7-5) scored 11 runs over the final three innings to take down Plymouth State (7-5) by an 11-8 final score. The Fords posted five-run frames in both the seventh and eighth innings, withstanding a Panthers surge in the eighth to come away victorious.
Senior Dylan Livingston got the start for the Fords, and twirled the first four innings, striking out three. Plymouth State got on the scoreboard first, adding two runs in the fourth and a run in the fifth.
Haverford loaded the bases with no outs in the sixth, as Zach Landry and Luke Smith both singled to begin the inning. Luke Wallis walked, and Owen Plambeck then lifted a sacrifice fly to plate a run, as the Fords chipped at the Plymouth State lead against Noah Wachter. With the starter for the Panthers out of the game, Haverford rallied against the bullpen in the seventh. The floodgates opened after two were out. Karp drew a walk, and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Landry then laced an RBI single, and promptly stole second. After a walk to Smith, Wallis reached on an error that plated a pair, giving the Fords a 4-3 cushion. Zach Becker added a two-RBI strike in the frame, and Haverford suddenly found itself up 6-3.
Josh Fuller (2-0) tossed a scoreless bottom of the inning, and the Haverford offense went back to work in the eighth. Ben Somorjai reached on an error ahead of a walk to Landry, and a Smith single to load the bases. Luke Wallis then singled up the middle, extending the Haverford lead to 8-3. With two out, Grant Schwartz had the big swing of the frame, sending a ball towering down the left field line for a home run and an 11-3 lead.
Plymouth State benefited from one of the rarest plays in baseball in the bottom of the inning, as Jimmy Zimokla followed a Max Lamora RBI double with an inside-the-park grand slam, as the leadoff hitter for the Cougars completed a sprint around the bases to trim the Haverford lead to just 11-8. Thomas Primosch came in to settle down the situation in the eighth, grabbing a pair of quick outs. Primosch also started the ninth before Brandon Jenkins was summoned to get the final out of the contest. Jenkins struck out Aaron Robertson to seal his second save of the season.
The Fords offense scored a whopping 88 runs on the spring break trip, outscoring opponents 88-34 while notching a 6-3 record, hitting .391, and slugging .590. The pitching racked up 66 strikeouts in just 68 innings.