SWARTHMORE, Pa. – The Swarthmore College baseball team dealt No. 4 Johns Hopkins University a pair of losses on Saturday, something the Blue Jays have not experienced since 2022.
The Garnet ended a seven-game skid against Hopkins, who was swept in a doubleheader for the first time since two setbacks to Muhlenberg College on April 23, 2022. Swarthmore trailed 6-2 in the opener before rallying for 10 unanswered runs to stun the visitors. The Garnet held a 4-1 lead in game two but the Blue Jays battled back to tie the score in the fifth.
Aidan Sullivan then had the highlight of the day, blasting a go-ahead grand slam in the eighth to propel Swarthmore to the sweep.
Sullivan finished with five hits, six RBI, and four runs over the two contests. He recorded a double to go along with the home run.
Nathaniel Kittredge went 5-for-8 with a pair of doubles, one RBI, and three runs.
Deven Peterson,
Noam AuYeung,
Brad Johnston,
Zac Kahn, and
Evan Hawkes all registered three hits with Johnston and Kahn driving in three runs apiece.
SWARTHMORE 12, JOHNS HOPKINS 6
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Garnet opened the scoring with two runs in the second. Kittredge led off with a double, went to third on a wild pitch, and stole home. Sullivan then doubled up the middle to plate AuYeung, who reached on a bunt single.
- Hopkins responded quickly with three runs in the third to take the lead. The Blue Jays recorded a sacrifice fly and two RBI singles. The visitors upped the advantage with a two-run homer in the fourth followed by an RBI single in the fifth to make the score 6-2.
- Kittredge started the Swarthmore rally with a two-out RBI double in the fifth. Kahn doubled in a pair, also with two outs, in the sixth and the Garnet were within one (6-5).
- Swarthmore's comeback continued in the seventh, as the Garnet exploded for seven runs to flip the script. The home team totaled six hits and capitalized on three errors by the Blue Jays. The first three hitters reached to start the inning, capped off by
Alessandro Propper-Bowring's game-tying single. Kittredge then scored the go-ahead run on a sacrifice bunt by AuYeung. Swarthmore added five more runs in the frame, highlighted by a two-run jack from Johnston.
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Aidan Tinker did yeoman's work on the mound for the Garnet, coming in for the third inning and finishing the contest to earn the win. After giving up six runs over his first three frames, the sophomore settled in and shut out Hopkins the rest of the way to set up the Swarthmore comeback.
GARNET LEADERS
Sullivan: 3-6, 2B, SB, 2 RBI, 2 R
Kahn: 2-4, 2B, BB, 3 RBI, R
Johnston: 2-5, HR, 2 RBI
Kittredge: 3-5, 2 2B, SB, RBI, 2 R
Tinker: W, 7.0 IP, 6 R, 9 H, 2 BB, 1 K
SWARTHMORE 8, JOHNS HOPKINS 4
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Garnet struck first again in the nightcap, pushing across two runs in the first. Johnston doubled in a run and Peterson followed with an RBI single. The Blue Jays got on the board with a two-out RBI single in the third to cut the deficit in half.
- Johnston and Kahn both scored on an error in the bottom of the third and Swarthmore had a 4-1 lead. However, Hopkins scored on a wild pitch in the fourth and hit two RBI singles in the fifth to even the score at four.
- The teams remained deadlocked until the bottom of the eighth. Peterson reached on an error to start the inning and Kittredge followed with a bunt single. After two strikeouts, the Garnet produced some two-out magic.
Wilson Henze snuck a base hit through the left side to keep the inning alive and load the bases for Sullivan. Swarthmore's all-time home runs leader crushed the first pitch he saw over the fence in right for a no-doubt grand slam to put the Garnet in front.
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Gavin Rigby pitched the final four innings for his first collegiate win, holding the Blue Jays scoreless and allowing just three hits. He struck out four and shut the door in the ninth after Sullivan's heroics.
GARNET LEADERS
Sullivan: 2-5, HR, 4 RBI, 2 R
Peterson: 2-4, RBI, R
Kittredge: 2-3, R
AuYeung: 2-4, SB
Rigby: W, 4.0 IP, 0 R, 3 H, 0 BB, 4 K
UP NEXT
The Garnet (22-12, 7-7 Centennial) take on rival Haverford College at home on Tuesday.
