Huge Inning Allows Statesmen to Rally, Clinch Heart Tournament Spot

Oskaloosa--The regular season went down to the final day and the William Penn baseball team had some magic up its proverbial sleeve as it rallied past Mount Mercy to gain a berth in the league tournament in Sunday's postponed Heart of America Athletic Conference doubleheader.

WPU (27-20, 15-17 Heart) dropped the opener 11-7, but rallied to win the nightcap 9-8.  The games were postponed due to rain that came into the area on Saturday.

William Penn got on the board first in the opener as Franklin Aparicio (Sr., Panama City, Panama, Business Management) led off with a double to left field.  Tim Jean (Sr., Libertyville, Ill., Public Accounting) then drove him in with a single.

MMU was finally able to respond in the third inning, scoring two runs to take a 2-1 lead.

The navy and gold answered back in the bottom of the third inning.  A single from Blair Speas (So., O'Fallon, Mo., Undecided) was followed by a hit by pitch of Aparicio and a walk from Jean to load the bases.

Nick George (Jr., Sarina, Ontario, Sociology) then drew a walk to bring in Speas, while Abraham Arroyo (So., Camuy, P.R., Wellness and Recreation) then delivered a two-run single which scored Aparicio and Jean.  Joel Holguin (So., San Bernardino, Calif., Sociology) doubled to right field to bring in George, while passed balls scored both Arroyo and Holguin as well for a 7-2 advantage.

Unfortunately, the fourth and fifth inning belonged to the Mustangs as they added add nine runs to their total to claim a 11-7 lead.

The game was entering the top of the seventh when a steady rain forced the postponement.  Due to William Penn battling Culver-Stockton for the final tournament berth, the games needed to be played on Sunday.  The Statesmen unfortunately could not make up ground and went into the nightcap requiring a win to make the tourney.

Bret Whiffen (Jr., Green Bay, Wis., Exercise Science) was the most effective Statesmen hurler, tossing 2 1/3 innings of relief.  He shut out MMU on just one hit, while striking out three batters and walking four.

Arroyo finished the game with two RBIs, while WPU was outhit 13-6.

Mount Mercy got on the board first in the nightcap, scoring one run in the third inning.  The Mustangs added to their lead in the fourth inning, putting four more on the board for a 5-0 advantage.

Looking down the barrel of their final game of the year, the navy and gold came alive with eight runs in the fifth inning.  A lead-off single from Aparicio was followed by back-to-back walks from Speas and Jean, while George drove two in on a single to right field.  Arroyo then reached on an error which also allowed Jean to come around as well.  Nathan Jessell (So., Napa, Calif., Sociology) then delivered a double to right field to score two more.

Aparicio and Jean added run-scoring singles, while Speas drove one in on a sacrifice fly.

WPU added an all-important insurance run in the sixth inning as Arroyo led off with a double and eventually touched home plate via a Jessell single.

The run was crucial as Mount Mercy did not go down easily in the top of the seventh, lifting a three-run home run to pull within one.  Fortunately, Brian Thomas (Jr., Shingle Springs, Calif.), who posted a complete-game victory on Friday, got three consecutive outs to finish the save and extend William Penn's season.

The Statesmen lost the hits battle 9-7 with Jessell tallying two base knocks along with three RBIs.  Aparicio also finished with two hits.

Thomas took the mound in the fifth inning and, outside of the home run, was very effective.  He permitted three hits, while also striking out three batters.

"What a tremendous way to end the regular season!" Head Coach Mike Laird said. "This was a total team effort!  Despite going down 5-0, the boys never gave up.  Nathan Jessell had a couple of huge hits and Brian Thomas was incredible in relief.  All of our pitchers did well today. This was a very gutsy performance from the entire team!"

Next Up: William Penn travel to Ozark, Mo. Thursday for the opening of the double-elimination Heart Championships.  WPU will be the #7 seed and face off against #8 Benedictine at 10 a.m.