No. 24 Marian Records Program's First-Win Over No. 1 in 17-8 Victory Against Taylor

INDIANAPOLIS - A Thursday for the ages at MU Ballpark saw the highest of highs, and late heartbreak for the Marian baseball team, as Marian opened their doubleheader with a lopsided 17-8 win over No. 1 Taylor, before falling in game two 6-5 in a 12-inning marathon. Marian's game one win gives the team its first-ever win over the top team in the country. The Knights end the day with a record of 35-12 overall and 27-6 in the Crossroads League. 

Pitching won the first inning as Evan Cooke and Brody Fine exchanged scoreless innings, but the same could not be said in the second, as both the Knights and Trojans got hot at the dish. Cooke was able to get two outs as he worked around a base-loaded situation, but could not get the final out, as a Fletcher Roemmich triple to center field sparked a rally, scoring three of six runs. A pair of RBI singles would push in three more Taylor runs, giving the Trojans a 6-0 lead. 

Marian battled back in the home half, rallying with a lead-off walk from Zach Bale and a double from Tate Bender. After Cole McManus drew a walk, the spark clicked for the Knights, as Bale scored on a wild pitch to score the first run. Nathan Pinarski flared an RBI groundout to add another to Marian's total, and Brayden Coffey kept the rally alive with an RBI single. Three batters later, after a hit batter and a walk, Taylor changed pitchers to Gage Gongwer, and the change ignited the Knights, as Hector Corona belted a grand slam to left-center, pushing Marian on top 7-6.

The rally put Marian in the lead for good, as Evan Cooke battled through two scoreless innings in the third and fourth, protecting the one-run lead. The Knights gave the pitching staff run support in the bottom of the fourth inning as Zach Bale legged out an inside-the-park home run, plating three runs to extend the lead to four on a 10-6 count. The lead would be more than enough for Marian, but it continued to grow, as Nathan Pinarski scored on an error in the fifth to make the game an 11-6 count. 

Kaeb Stebbins took over on the hill in the fifth inning and stranded two runners in his first frame of relief, and in the sixth, he survived a solo home run, keeping Marian on top by four. The Knights battled back for two runs in the bottom of the sixth as Ty Jarvis drew an RBI walk, and Elijah Kelly ripped an RBI sacrifice fly, extending the lead to six. Taylor would add to their count in the top of the eighth after a scoreless seventh inning passed, but it would not be enough to overcome Marian's command of the game. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Zach Bale launched a first-pitch solo shot to left-center, and three batters later, Ty Jarvis left the yard with a two-run home run, pushing Marian on top by eight. River Pecina put the final dagger in the Trojans, roping a sacrifice fly to give Marian a 17-8 lead.

In the ninth inning, Aiden Kerr faced four batters, locking down the win after stranding a single, closing out the Knights' first-ever win against the top-ranked team in the NAIA. 

Marian's 17-8 victory was highlighted by Zach Bale's 3-4 performance at the plate, as he homered twice and drove in four runs. Hector Corona had a four-RBI game thanks to his grand slam, and Ty Jarvis finished the afternoon 2-4 with three RBI and a walk. 

On the mound, Kaeb Stebbins scored the win in relief, moving to 5-0 on the season after pitching 4.0 innings out of the bullpen. Stebbins allowed three hits and two runs in his outing, striking out four. Evan Cooke received a no-decision, allowing five hits and six runs in his start. Cooke managed to retire seven batters on strikes in the game. 

Marian will play for the No. 2 seed in the Crossroads League standings on Saturday afternoon, needing a win or a loss from Huntington to secure the position. Marian and Taylor end the regular season at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, with the team's senior day doubleheader to be held 30 minutes following game one. 

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