PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania baseball program was dropped in a midweek non-conference game against Monmouth. Penn shot out to a 3-0 lead after the first two innings, but six runs by the Hawks in the top of the third propelled Monmouth to victory.
 
PENN 5, MONMOUTH 8
WP: Evan Ferris (1-0)
LP: Robby Cerulle (1-2)
 
NOTES
*Sean Phelan extended his reached-base streak to 28 games, having gotten on base in all 26 of Penn's games this season, as well as in the final two games of the 2018 season.
 
*Over 1.2 innings pitched, Grant Guillory matched his career-high in strikeouts after fanning four of his six batters faced.
 
*Captain Matt O'Neill continued to dominate at the plate, going 3-for-5 with an RBI and two runs scored. Over his last seven games, he has gone 21-for-37 with 14 RBI and 12 runs scored.
 
*The Quakers were held to under six runs for just the sixth time this season.
 
*Eight of Penn's starting nine contributed with a hit.
 
*Matt McGeagh knocked his first triple of the season and fourth of his career in the third inning.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 As they have throughout the season, the Quakers jumped out to an early lead. O'Neill reached base with a single to left, then scored from second after an RBI single by Josh Hood.
 
Penn added on two more runs in the second. McGeagh got into scoring position after tripling down the right field line. Tommy Courtney plated him on the next at-bat with a perfect squeeze bunt, beating out the throw to reach first. Courtney touched home himself after an RBI single by O'Neill, giving Penn a 3-0 lead.
 
Monmouth responded in the top of the third with an offensive onslaught. A single and two walks loaded the bases with no outs. The Hawks cut to within one on a two-RBI single to deep left field. They tied the game with a single to center, then took a 4-3 lead after another single to center field. Monmouth tacked on a fifth run with an RBI double, then ended the inning with another RBI single to make it 6-3.
 
The Quakers cut one back on a bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the third to make it 6-4, but another RBI single and a solo home run made it 8-4 heading into the bottom of the sixth.
 
Penn looked poised to start a comeback in the bottom of the eighth as O'Neill doubled, tagged up on a pop fly to reach third, and scored on a wild pitch. Craig Larsen walked and Hood reached after taking a pitch to the back, but the Quakers weren't able to build on afterwards.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
Penn looks ahead to the weekend as the Quakers reignite their historic rivalry with Princeton as they host the Tigers at Meiklejohn Stadium. The series will begin on Friday at 3 p.m. and will conclude with a doubleheader on Saturday starting at 11:30 a.m.