KANNAPOLIS, N.C. - The Swarthmore College baseball team had a ninth-inning comeback attempt fall short in an 11-8 season-opening loss to Berry College at the D3 Showcase on Friday.

The Garnet were ahead 3-2 after four innings but the Vikings scored seven times over the fifth and sixth innings to take a 9-3 advantage. Berry was ahead 11-4 through eight and Swarthmore pushed across four runs in the ninth to get within three. However, the Garnet stranded the bases loaded to come up just short.

Brad Johnston went 2-4 with a double, a homer, two RBI, and two runs to lead Swarthmore at the plate. Nathaniel Kittredge hit a double and drove in three while Leor Kedar smacked a pair of hits. Deven Peterson knocked in two in his collegiate debut.

HOW IT HAPPENED
- Berry broke the ice in the second, scoring on an error to take a 1-0 lead. The Vikings scored again on a bunt single in the third to go up two.

- The Garnet got on the board with three in the fourth. Johnston was hit by a pitch and stole second before coming home on Peterson's single. Kittredge followed with a two-run double to plate Peterson and Zac Kahn to give Swarthmore a 3-2 lead.

- Berry turned the tide with three runs in the fifth followed by four in the sixth to go ahead 9-3. The Vikings had six hits and benefitted from one Garnet error.

- Johnston homered in the eighth to make the score 9-4 but Berry answered with two in the bottom of the frame to increase the margin to seven (11-4).

- Evan Hawkes led off the ninth with a triple for Swarthmore. Alessandro Propper-Bowring followed with a RBI single. Francisco Mora and Kedar hit back-to-back singles to load the bases. The Garnet scored three times with the bases full on a groundnut, hit by pitch, and a walk to get within three (11-8). However, a strikeout ended the Swarthmore threat and the content.

GARNET LEADERS
Johnston: 2-4, 2B, HR, SB, 2 RBI, 2 R
Kedar: 2-4, SB, R
Peterson: 1-3, BB, 2 RBI, R
Kittredge: 1-4, 2B, BB, 3 RBI

UP NEXT
The Garnet (0-1) take on Pfeiffer University on Saturday.