4/14/25

SCRANTON, Pa. – The Vikings from Mercer took the rubber match of the three-game set, besting Lackawanna College baseball with a nine-run ninth inning in a bizarre 13-9 victory on Monday afternoon at Volpe Field at the University of Scranton's Kevin P. Quinn Athletics Campus in south Scranton.
 
The Falcons (20-14, 9-3) fell behind by a 4-0 score after three innings, and trailed 4-1 heading into the bottom of the eighth on what was, to that point, a sleepy afternoon for the Lackawanna bats. After the Falcons scored a pair of runs on a balk and an RBI ground out, the score stood at 4-3 heading into the ninth, where everything went haywire for both teams.
 
Back-to-back walks forced the Falcons to make a pitching change, then another walk, followed by a two-run single to center, gave Mercer (25-10, 11-1) a 6-3 lead. Another pitching change brought another walk, followed by a fielder's choice that got the force out at home for the first out of the inning. With the bases still loaded, a blooped shot just cleared first base for a base hit that scored another run and made it 7-3, Vikings.
 
The Vikings then took a sledgehammer to the scoreboard, when Geno Bianco hit a towering drive to left field that kept going and going until it cleared the fence with ease, a grand slam that sent the Vikings into hysterics and pushed their lead out to 11-3, still with one out in the ninth. A strikeout put two away, but a double, a walk, and then back-to-back singles scored two more runs, all before a strikeout mercifully ended the top frame. After the dust had settled, Mercer scored nine runs on six hits, drew five walks, and brought 14 batters to the plate in the inning, giving itself a 13-3 lead heading into the bottom half.
 
Then, it was the Falcons' turn to finally get their bats going. With Mercer closer Michael Whitmore on to face a slew of young pinch hitters from Lackawanna, the young Falcons made things more interesting than they should have been. With one out, McDermott Murphy (Albany, GA) reached on a dropped third strike to give the Falcons a baserunner. Kolton Haifley (New Oxford, PA) was hit by a pitch, giving the Falcons two baserunners with one out. A fly out to center was the second out, then a pinch-hit walk loaded the bases. In stepped first-year player Julian Montez (Westfield, NJ), and the towering lefty doubled to the gap in left center to clear the bases for three runs. A wild pitch put Montez at third, and he scored when Quinten Jones (Harrisburg, PA) lined a double to deep left field to make it 13-7. Another pinch-hitter drew a walk, and then Jackson Widener (Wildwood, MO) tripled to right field to score two more runs, inching the Falcons closer at 13-9. The Falcons had batted around in the ninth, before a strikeout finally ended the game after a 15-run ninth inning from both teams.
 
Jake Kelleher (Exeter, PA) and Brooks Henderson IV (Feasterville, PA) each had two hits, while Deacon Brown (Williamsport, PA) had an RBI double in the fifth inning for the only Lackawanna run scored before the eighth inning. Mercer scored three in the first off starter Liam O'Leary (Souderton, PA), who finished with 6.2 innings pitched, striking out eight and giving up four runs on seven hits.
 
Lackawanna now sinks to second in Region XIX with one more series to play. The Falcons get back to non-region action on Tuesday, April 15^th, with a home doubleheader against Monroe University. First pitch is set for 12:00pm ET for the twin bill at Scranton HS baseball field. The Falcons and the Mustangs split a doubleheader earlier this season in New Rochelle, NY.