GRINNELL, Iowa –
Matt Hammond's '17 RBI single to left-center field in the bottom of the ninth inning capped a wild game in Grinnell College's 15-14 baseball win over Monmouth College Thursday afternoon.
Monmouth came back to win the second game 9-5 for the split.
With the score tied 14-all heading into the bottom of the ninth,
Anthony Mack '16 walked before being sacrificed to second by
Graham Fisher '16. After a strikeout, Hammond stepped to the plate and delivered the game-winner.
Niko Takayesu '17 had four hits for Grinnell, while Mack and Hammond had three each including homers.
Walker Bell '15, Fisher and
Michael Slattery '18 all had two hits, with both of Fisher's being round-trippers.
Michael Annerino '15 tossed two-hit ball over the final two innings to get the win.
After falling behind 3-0, Grinnell retook the lead on Fisher's grand slam homer to left in the third to grab a 4-3 lead. The Pioneers tacked on three more runs in the fourth on Mack's two-run homer to left-center and Fisher's solo shot to left-center.
Grinnell made it 10-3 in the fifth with three more runs, with Slattery and Takayesu delivering RBI singles and Bell knocking in a run on a sacrifice fly.
But Monmouth stormed back with nine runs in the sixth to go ahead 12-10. Grinnell retook the lead in the bottom of the sixth on Hammond's three-run homer to left.
After the Fighting Scots scored twice in the eighth to go ahead 14-12, Grinnell scored a run in the bottom of the eighth on Takayesu's sacrifice fly, setting up Hammond's dramatic game-winner in the ninth.
In the second game, Grinnell took a 3-0 lead before falling. Takayesu, Mack,
Sam Galanek '18, Hammond and
Matt Godinsky '16 all had two hits for Grinnell.
Galanek had an RBI single in the first inning and Mack delivered an RBI single in the third before later stealing home for a 3-0 Pioneer lead.
Monmouth scored three runs in the fourth, one in the fifth and five in the sixth for a 9-3 edge.
The Pioneers tallied two runs in the seventh on Galanek's two-run single.
Fisher was the pitcher of record for the Pioneers, who are 1-1 in the Midwest Conference South Division and 5-9 overall. Monmouth is also 1-1 in the division and 6-10 in all games.
Those two teams meet again Saturday at Monmouth for a twin bill. The first pitch is at 1 p.m.
