April 14, 2005

Box Score

BALTIMORE, MD - Freshman Todd Emr (Westwood, NJ/Saddle River Day) drove home the game-winning run with a double in the ninth inning as the Johns Hopkins baseball team edged the visiting Blue Jays of Elizabethtown, 12-11. Hopkins, which used 26 players including nine pitchers, improved to 17-5 while Elizabethtown dropped to 8-9.

With one out and a full count, Emr doubled into left centerfield, sending home junior Bryce Baumann (Oklahoma City, OK/Casady School), who had singled to right. It was Emr's ninth at bat, third hit, second RBI, and first double of the year.

The game was tied at 11 entering the ninth inning, after Elizabethtown rallied back from an 8-2 deficit, beginning with six runs off three hits in the top of the sixth. Hopkins sophomore Ryan Lanpher (York, PA/Calvert Hall) walked two of the first three batters, who both advanced and scored after an error at third and a single from Jared Morris (Brielle, NJ/Manasquan). Bryan Torresani (Horsham, PA/Hatboro-Horsham) drove home a third run with a single to right field before Damien Jones (Mountain Top, PA/Crestwood) sent home two more runs with a double and then scored on a passed ball.

With the game tied 8-8, freshman Rob Pietroforte (Brooklyn, NY/Berkely Carroll) hit a RBI single to left field, scoring Baumann, who had walked to lead off the inning. Hopkins held Etown in the top of the seventh and scored two runs off a Jonas Fester (Syosset, NY/Syosset) homer in the bottom of the inning for a 11-8 lead with two innings to play. The home run was freshman Fester's first of his career.

But Elizabethtown answered with three runs in the top of the eighth to tie the game at 11. Torresani and Jones hit back-to-back outfield singles to open the inning, and both came home on a Brandon Watson (Philadelphia, PA/Central) single and a squeeze bunt from Brian Bonner (Pitman, NJ/Pitman). Watson scored the third run when Jon Kalejta (Boyertown, PA/Boyertown) singled to center.

Andy Mees (Kinnelon, NJ/Kinnelon) shut out Hopkins in the bottom of the eighth and freshman Joe Zaccaria (Manhasset, NY/Manhasset) got two of Hopkins' three outs on strikeouts in the top of the ninth.

For Hopkins, Baumann finished 3 for 4 with four runs scored, while Fester had two hits, two runs scored, and three RBI. Pietroforte went 2 for 4 at the plate, and added one run and three RBI. Juniors Tim Sliker (Hamilton, NJ/The Pennington School) and Corey Gleason (Binghamton, NY/Binghamton) also had strong days at the plate, as Sliker finished 2 for 2 with one run and three RBI, and Gleason went 2 for 5 with two runs and an RBI.

Jones led Elizabethtown with a 2-for-4 day at the plate, including two runs and two RBI.

Johns Hopkins returns home tomorrow, April 15, for a conference matchup with McDaniel (3:30 p.m.)