KEYSER, W.V.– In a matchup that would have been worthy of next weekend's Region 20 Championship tournament, the Monroe College Mustangs baseball team dropped a truly back-and-forth battle to WVU Potomac State College on Thursday by a score of 16-15 after the Catamounts walked it off in the bottom of the ninth. The Mustangs fall to 29-5-1 overall on the season with the loss, while the Catamounts improve to 30-6 overall.
The Catamounts got the early jump on the Mustangs in the bottom of the first. With one out, Josh Hoffman reached on a dropped fly in left that put him on second. Graham Brown brought him in with a single to make it 1-0. Two singles later, Brown came around to score to put the home team on top, 2-0.
The home team struck again in the bottom of the second. Dylan Perry and Zack Whitacre each walked, and then Hoffman then hit an RBI double to score Perry and give the Catamounts a three-run edge. After Brown was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Caleb Taylor drew a walk to bring in another run and make it a 4-0 game.
The Mustangs got on the board with one out in the top of the third. Miguel Toribio roped a solo homer, bringing the score to 4-1.
Hoffman got the Catamounts on the board again with a leadoff solo homer in the bottom of the fourth to push the lead to 5-1.
The Mustangs made up for the run the inning prior when Pedro Mota led off the fifth for Monroe with a solo homer of his own, bringing the Mustangs back within three.
Monroe fought back in the top of the seventh. Mota hit a one-out single, and then John Garcia reached on an error by the third baseman that left runners on second and third. A passed ball then brought in Mota to bring the Mustangs within two. Then, after his enormous day on Wednesday, Jose Martinez came up clutch, blasting a three-run homer over the left-field fence to put the Mustangs ahead, 6-5. After a Joan Sosa double, Salix Felix extended his single-season home run record with a two-run blast, pushing Monroe's newly gained lead to 8-5. After Jared Paladino walked, Dante Paolucci hit a fly ball into shallow right that was dropped by the right fielder, bringing in Paladino to bring the lead to 9-5.
The home team was not done after the Mustangs' comeback. With a runner on in the bottom of the seventh, Anthony Swenda sent a two-run homer over the wall in left field to get the Catamounts back within two. With the bases loaded later in the inning, Hoffman hit a grand slam for the Catamounts to put them back on top, 11-9. Potomac State loaded the bases again, and Dakota Miller drew a walk to bring in the Catamounts' 12th run of the game. Swenda later brought in a run with a ground out to leave the home team ahead, 13-9.
The action continued in the top of the eighth with another big rally for the Mustangs. Toribio walked with one out, and then Martinez singled. Another single by Sosa brought in Toribio to get Monroe back within three. A walk by Felix loaded the bases, and then Anthony Fontana blasted the Mustangs fourth grand slam in as many days, putting Monroe back in the lead, 14-13.
The Catamounts had a runner on second when Hoffman hit his third home run of the day, putting the home team back on top, 15-14, with the Mustangs three outs away from defeat.
With one out in the top of the ninth, Garcia was the next Mustangs to come up clutch, hitting a game-tying solo homer to make it a 15-15 game.
It was not in the card for the Mustangs, though. A walk and a hit-by-pitch to start the bottom of the ninth put the pressure on, and then a bunt single loaded the bases with nobody out. Jack Hoeymans then drew one more walk to end the game with a 16-15 final in favor of the Catamounts.
Roman Dorosh shouldered the loss for Monroe after giving up the winning run in the ninth, dropping him to 6-1 on the season, while Graham Brown gets the win for the Catamounts in relief to improve to 1-0.