Box Score KOKOMO, Ind. – A spot in the championship round at the 2022 Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) Tournament was up for grabs on Friday (May 13) with top-seeded Franklin meeting second-seeded Earlham in the winner's bracket.
The Grizzlies (29-13) looked to rally late, but couldn't get the tying run across in the final innings as Earlham (25-11) held on for a 9-8 win. The loss drops Franklin into the elimination round, where they will need to win three straight games to claim their fifth conference tournament title.
How it Happened
The Grizzlies jumped out to their first lead of the day in the second, with Case Starkey driving in a pair with a triple and Colby Reed following with an RBI single to put FC up 3-1. Earlham countered with three straight runs, but Franklin re-took the lead in the fifth with AJ Sanders belting a solo shot and Logan Demkovich adding an RBI double later in the inning to put the top seed up 5-4.
However, the Quakers would tack on three more runs in the fifth to grab the lead for good. Sanders cut the Earlham lead to 7-6 in the sixth with an RBI triple, but the Quakers had another answer with two runs in the bottom of the inning. Sean Sullivan brought the Griz within a run with a two-out, two run single in the eighth, but Franklin couldn't get the game tying hit as the final four batters were retired in order.
Sean Thomas went 3-for-4 at the plate with Sanders and Sullivan both tacking on two hits each for the Grizzlies.
Damian Tillie got the start and went three innings before giving way to Tyler Wick (1-1), Jackson Young, Chris Foote and Alex Reinoehl. Reinoehl's ninth inning appearance was the 63rd of his career, matching Cody Nees for the most appearances in program history.
Up Next
The Grizzlies will face elimination on Saturday (May 14) afternoon, when they meet the winner of Friday's Rose-Hulman/Anderson game for a spot in the championship round. First pitch is set for 12:30 p.m.
