BALTIMORE, MD – The Johns Hopkins baseball team hosted McDaniel Saturday afternoon with a spot in the Centennial Conference Championship on the line, outscoring the Green Terror 8-0 in the final five innings to secure its place in Monday's title game. McDaniel — which beat Dickinson to earn their matchup against the Blue Jays on the winner's side — will face off against the Red Devils once again with their season on the line while Hopkins advances to the Championship game for the 16^th time in program history.
 
After a scoreless opening two innings, runs were aplenty in a pair of third and fourth frames that saw both sides plate four. McDaniel (23-14, 13-5 Centennial) broke the scoreless tie in the top of the third on a two-run shot to right center from Shae McKenna, but the lead was short-lived with Hopkins (31-9, 16-2 Centennial) plating four in the bottom half of the frame kickstarted by a pair of RBI walks drawn by Caleb Cyr and Jacob Harris to make it a 2-2 game.
 
Still in the third with the score tied and the bases loaded, Isaiah Winikur stepped into the box and gave Hopkins its first lead of the afternoon on a single to shallow left field that scored Cyr and Harris to push the Blue Jays in front 4-2. Like the Green Terror's lead, however, Hopkins' did not last, with McDaniel plating two in the fourth to level things once again at four. The Green Terror threatened to retake the lead with the bases loaded and two outs, but Cole Jefferson came up big with a strikeout out of the bullpen to end the frame with minimal damage.
 
An over-two-hour weather delay would pause the game following a 1-2-3 top of the fifth for McDaniel and turn out to be the difference for the Blue Jays in what was an even game to that point. Prior to the stoppage, Hopkins had scored just two runs on one hit through four innings, but the script would flip almost immediately once action resumed, starting with Shawn Steuerer.
 
On the first at bat after the return to play, the junior roped a no-doubter over the left field wall to put the Blue Jays back up 5-4 and start a multi-inning rally. Dillon Souvignier followed up Steuerer's long ball with a double to left center — already surpassing Hopkins' hit total from the first four innings combined — with another walk drawn by Cyr putting two on with no one out. Harris flew out to move Souvignier to third and put runners on the corners, setting up Winikur to bring in his third RBI of the day on a sac fly that scored the junior and made it 6-4 Blue Jays.
 
Hopkins stayed hot at the plate following a shutdown inning on the mound from Grant Meert, tacking on four more runs in the bottom of the sixth to balloon its lead to six. A Souvignier sac fly scored Jimmy Stevens for the inning's opening run before Cyr hit his third home run of the tournament — a three-run homer — to give the Jays' their largest lead of the afternoon at 10-4.
 
A pair of insurance runs in the seventh built the lead to eight, with Meert and Tyler Sugrim extending the Green Terror shutout to six innings, clinching the 12-4 win and a spot in the Centennial Conference Championship where they are one win away from title No. 13.
 
Due to expected rain, Saturday's third game scheduled between Dickinson and McDaniel has been postponed to Monday, May 6. The winner of that contest will then face off against Hopkins in the Championship Game, with the if-needed, winner-take-all second game to be played at a later date. Timing of the first pitch for Monday's opening game between the Green Terror and Red Devils is to be determined.
 
Inside the Box Score — Johns Hopkins:
• Kieren Collins made his team-high 10^th start of the season on the mound, allowing two runs on four hits and fanning three in three innings. Earning his second win of the year out of the bullpen was Jefferson, who combined with Meert and Sugrim to shut out the Green Terror over the final 5.1 innings.
 
• Cyr went just 1-1 on the day after drawing a career-best four walks, but his one hit was the senior's team-high 15^th homer of the season, a three-run shot to put Hopkins up 10-4. Cyr continues to lead the Blue Jays in both homers (15) and RBIs (50) in a stellar senior season.
 
• Steuerer was the spark plug in the win, hitting a solo shot to left on the first at bat following the game's two-hour rain delay. The home run was the junior's 12^th of the season, bringing his career total to 37 which ranks second in program history.
 
• Winikur finished second on the team in RBIs with three in a 1-3 day at the plate. Since returning from injury earlier this week, the graduate student has registered a hit in three of four games and has five RBIs.