SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant baseball team rallied for three runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to force a 9-9 tie with Merrimack in the home opener at Conaty Park on Wednesday afternoon.
Bryant has now tied for the second time under head coach
Ryan Klosterman. Wednesday's game was called due to darkness. Bryant will now head to Delaware for a three-game series with the Blue Hens starting on Friday afternoon.
Trailing 9-6 in the ninth,
Jacob Gaudreau got the rally started with a single to deep short. An infield error put runners on first and second and
Gavin Noriega plated the first run with an RBI single.
Brandyn Durand then doubled to right field but the ball hopped over the wall for a ground-rule double. It allowed just one to score but
Pat D'Amico's sac fly tied it one batter later.
Durand finished with three hits and three RBI, including his fourth home run. Zyons and
Charlie Saul also homered for the Black and Gold.
Game Information
Bryant 9, Merrimack 9
Records: Bryant 2-3-1 | Merrimack 1-5-1
Location: Conaty Park (Smithfield, R.I.)
W|L|S:
Key Moments
- Bryant rallied for three runs in the bottom of the ninth to force a tie.
How it Happened
- Merrimack grabbed the early lead with a solo home run two batters into the game.
- Zyons answered for Bryant, hitting the first pitch in the bottom of the first 414 feet to right for a leadoff home run.
- Bryant grabbed the lead in the first as Gavin Greger and Durand completed a successful first-and-third steal.
- Saul pushed Bryant's lead to 3-1 with a laser over the left field wall for his first-career home run.
- The Warriors then scored the next five runs to take a 6-3 lead. A sac fly in the third was followed by a four-run fourth. Samuel Sherman had the big hit in the fourth with a flare to center that alluded a diving Greger for a two-run double.
- Bryant pulled within a run in the fifth as Durand launched an opposite field two-run shot.
- The teams traded runs in the sixth and Merrimack took a 7-6 lead to the top of the ninth. A two-out ground ball to short went awry at short, however, and the ball ended up along the first baseline. The initial play allowed the first run to score and the second runner alertly took home as Bryant attempted to get the hitter at second.
- Needing three to tie, Gaudreau opened the ninth with a single to deep short. A Merrimack error put two on and a Noriega single plated the first run. Durand then drove one to right that the outfielder never saw. The ball, however, bounced just over the wall, keeping pinch-runner Aleksei Goldhill from scoring from first. D'Amico followed with a sac fly to tie the score at 9-9.
Inside the Box Score
- Merrimack outhit Bryant, 9-7.
- The Bulldogs committed two errors.
- Durand went 3-for-5 with a home run, double, three RBI and two runs scored.
- Zyons homered and scored twice.
- Saul homered and drove in two runs.
- Trey Deitelbaum started and tossed 2.0 innings. He allowed one run on two hits and struck out two.
- Jackson Vanesko recorded 2.0 scoreless innings of relief.
- Brooks Ey and Sean Zaslaw each recorded a scoreless inning.
Game Notes
- Bryant is now 12-2-1 vs Merrimack at the DI level.
- Durand now leads the team in home runs (4), RBI (12) and runs scored (8) through six games.
- Zyons' home run was his first of the year and the 13th of his career.
- Saul hit his first-career home run.
- Deitelbaum made his first career start on Wednesday.
Up Next
Bryant opens a three-game series at Delaware on Friday at 4:00 p.m. The series continues Saturday (2:00 p.m.) and concludes on Sunday (1:00 p.m.).
