(Posted April 14, 2006)

Juniata 8, Elizabethtown 7 (11 innings)

ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. ? The Juniata College baseball team rallied from a 6-1 deficit, and scored the winning run on a wild pitch in the 11th inning to claim an 8-7 victory over Commonwealth Conference foe Elizabethtown Friday afternoon in Elizabethtown. The win raised Juniata?s record to 16-8-1 on the year and 9-3-1 in Commonwealth play while the Blue Jays

With one out in the bottom of the 11th Zach Sternberg (McCaskey/Lancaster) singled to put the go-ahead run on base. Pinch-runner Shawn McDonald (Bishop Canevin/Gibsonia) moved to third on Darren Hake?s (Red Lion/Red Lion) hit-and-run single. A wild pitch from Elizabethtown hurler Matt Woehnker then brought home McDonald with the go-ahead run.

Paul Dunklebarger (State College/State College) pitched the ninth inning, allowing just a two-out hit to earn the save. A diving catch from Troy Beaver (Bellwood-Antis/Bellwood) on the lead-off hitter also helped preserve the victory.

The two teams traded runs for most of the first nine innings. The Eagles struck first with as an RBI single from Hake plated Jesse Leonard (Shade/Johnstown) with a run in the top of the second. The Blue Jays answered with a run in the bottom of the inning with Tom Semanek delivering an RBI single to knot the game at one.

Elizabethtown then took control with a five-run fourth inning that gave the home team a comfortable 6-1 edge. Run-scoring singles from Jared Auman, Adam Sheibley and Mike Donahue were the big blows in the five-hit inning.

Those were the final runs Elizabethtown got off Juniata starter Jason Enoch (Hempfield/Landisville) who went seven innings, allowing six runs on 10 hits. Enoch struck out six but also walked five in the game.

Juniata quickly fought its way back into the game by matching Elizabethtown?s five-run inning by scoring five runs of its own in the fifth. Walt Goedkoop (Manheim Township/Lancaster) knocked in the first two runs with a single, which was followed by RBI base hits from Will Russell (Tyrone/Tyrone), Sternberg and Hake. The five runs tied the game at six and all came off Elizabethtown starter Tyler Hoffman who went six innings, and allowed six runs on nine hits with three strikeouts.

The Eagles moved back in front in the top of the eighth inning when a David Saintz (Titusville/Titusville) single brought in an unearned run off reliever Dan Lauletta to make the score 7-6. The Blue Jays answered back with an unearned run off Jeff Hayes (Indian Valley/Lewistown) in the bottom of the inning to tie the score at seven.

Hayes earned the win for the Eagles as he three innings, allowing two hits and the one unearned run. Woehnker was tagged with the loss as he pitched 3 2-3 innings giving up three hits and one run while fanning five.

Hake finished 3-for-6 with a pair of RBI in the game, while Saintz also had three hits. Goedkoop drove in a pair of runs and scored once. Leonard and Sternberg each produced a pair of hits for Juniata.

Sheibley led Elizabethtown with three hits while adding two RBI and two runs scored. Donahue drove home three runs with a pair of hits in the game, while Semanek and Auman both produced a pair of hits.

Juniata and Elizabethtown will complete their three-game series on Saturday with a doubleheader in Huntingdon.

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Contact April Feagley at feaglea@juniata.edu or (814) 641-3131 for more information.