Statesmen Rally to Win Rubber Game Over Mount Mercy
William Penn University Athletics
Cedar Rapids–One run in both the eighth and ninth innings helped the William Penn baseball team to a huge 7-6 victory over Mount Mercy in Midwest Collegiate Conference play Sunday.
The Statesmen (17-23, 10-10 MCC) are now currently tied for fifth in the league. With their tiebreaker over Iowa Wesleyan, if the season ended today, the navy and gold would earn a spot in the five-team league tourney. Prior to this story, it had been incorrectly reported that the top six teams receive a bid, while it is actually only five teams that continue to the postseason.
The visitors struck first Sunday when Brad Chin (Sr., San Rafael, Calif., San Rafael HS) recorded a first-inning RBI on a groundout that plated Stanley Muller (Sr., Tucson, Ariz., Cochise CC).
The Mustangs (23-23, 12-8 MCC) responded with two in the bottom half and then tacked one each in the second and third to lead 4-1.
William Penn narrowed the deficit to 4-2 in the fourth when Tony Alvarez (Jr., Spring Valley, Calif., Southwestern CC) singled to score Chin.
The navy and gold claimed their first lead of the day in the seventh courtesy of a two-run home run by Nathan Wood (Jr., Tucson, Ariz., Arizona Western CC) and a double by Jayme Mueller (Jr., Mundelein, Ill., College of Lake County CC). Daniel Wehr (Sr., Sigourney, Sigourney HS) scored on Wood’s roundtripper (his team-leading third of 2012), while Chin touched home on Mueller’s base knock.
Mount Mercy recaptured the advantage at 6-5, however, with two in the bottom half.
Fortunately, the Statesmen still had plenty of fight in them. Aaron Laird (Sr., Oskaloosa, Oskaloosa HS) led off with a single in the eighth and later scored to tie the matchup. The eventual ninth-inning game-winner came in the form of pinchrunner Julio Riojas (Jr., Hampton, Ill., College of Lake County CC) as he touched home plate on a double by Alvarez.
All nine William Penn starters recorded a hit as the visitors outhit the home squad 13-9. Muller, Chin, Alvarez, and Randall Packard (Sr., Forestville, Calif., Cal State-Monterey) each tallied two hits in the win.
Staff ace Jorge Quezada (Jr., San Ysidro, Calif., Castle Park HS) was again asked to contribute by starting the game. He only lasted 2 1/3 frames though.
Jonathan Davis (Sr., San Diego, Calif., Southwestern CC) relieved Quezada in the third and had unquestionably his best outing of the season. The senior won his first game (1-3) by limiting Mount Mercy to two runs (both earned) on four hits over 6 2/3 frames. He struck out two without a walk.
Next: William Penn hosts MCC foe St. Ambrose Tuesday on Senior Day. The nine-inning game begins at 4 p.m.
