PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania baseball team lost on the road to La Salle, 7-6, on Friday afternoon.

The Quakers (4-8) twice erased late deficits in the game before the Explorers (26-13) won in dramatic fashion in the bottom of the ninth.  

Freshman Wyatt Henseler had another strong game for the Red and Blue as he went 3-for-5 with three RBI and two runs scored.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Both pitchers controlled the pace and tempo early on. Quaker starter Kevin Eaise scattered two hits through the first five innings.

Penn opened the scoring with two runs in the top of the sixth. In the frame, Wyatt Henseler hit an RBI single and Ben Miller added a run-scoring double.

La Salle answered in the home half of the frame with a three-run outburst that chased Eaise from the contest.

Penn took back the lead in the top of the seventh. The Red and Blue got a two-out, two-run double to center from Andrew Hernandez to jump in front, 4-3.

The lead was short-lived as the Explorers once again scored three times to take back the edge in the bottom half.

Neither team was able to get anything going in the eight as Penn trailed, 6-4, heading into the ninth. Justin Carboni led off the stanza with a walk and Tommy Courtney followed with a double down the left-field line to put the tying run in scoring position with no outs.

After the Explorer reliever retired the next Quaker hitter, Henseler delivered a two-run double to tie the game at six. Penn threatened in the frame, eventually loading the bases, but the two teams headed to the bottom of the ninth tied at six.

La Salle answered once again as the Explorers plated the winning run thanks to a two-out single in the bottom of the ninth.

NOTES
*Each of the last two contests between La Salle and Penn have been decided in walk-off fashion.

*Henseler had two or more RBI for the second game in a row. He leads the team this spring with 12 RBI. It was his third multi-hit game of the season and he stretched his hitting streak to seven games.

*Andrew Hernandez was 2-for-4 with two RBI as the DH before being spelled for a pinch runner late in the game. His two-run double in the seventh was his team-leading fifth two-bagger in 2021.

*Ben Miller was the other Quaker with a multi-hit game as he went 2-for-4 with a walk and an RBI. It was his second two-hit game against La Salle this year.

*In relief, Cole Sichley worked a scoreless eighth inning for the Quakers.

*David Shoemaker was saddled with the loss after going the two-thirds of an inning. After surrendering a leadoff double and issuing a free pass, he struck the next two batters out. The following La Salle hitter ended the contest with a single through the right side.