Marian Baseball Upsets No. 3 Southeastern in Extra-Inning Thriller

LAKELAND, Fla. - The Marian baseball team ended their Friday doubleheader in Florida against No. 3 Southeastern in a big way, rebounding from a game-one 12-2 defeat before upsetting the Fire 10-5 in 10 innings in game two to log the program's first win over a top-five NAIA program in over a decade. Marian's split moves their season record to 5-1 on the young campaign, with the team recording its first ranked win in three seasons. 

Looking to rebound after the game one loss, Marian turned the ball to Evan Cooke, and the first-year Knight did not disappoint, extinguishing the Fire to the tune of three scoreless innings to open the game. Cooke would have to pitch out of a self-inflicted bases-loaded jam in the first, but kept the game scoreless, repeating the formula again in the third inning. Southeastern would break the shutout in the bottom of the fourth as Cooke allowed a lead-off solo home run to break, but limited the damage with three infield outs.

Marian's offense had chances in the first four innings of play on Friday, starting the game with a pair of first inning singles from Brayden Coffey and Hector Corona, while in the second Tate Bender recorded a base hit, but neither opportunity yielded a run. The Knights again looked to strike in the third as the team loaded the bases with walks, but came up short as a pop-up ended the threat. 

Trailing 1-0 entering the fifth inning, Marian's volatile offense broke through, striking the match for four runs in the inning. A single from Coffey broke open the inning, while another Corona hit and error against the Fire loaded the bases. Cole McManus gave Marian the lead, snapping the shutout with a three-run double to put the visitors on top. Tate Bender would follow with an RBI single, giving Marian a 4-1 lead at the game's midway point. 

With a lead at hand, Cooke settled in and logged his best inning of the young season in the home half of the fifth, striking out two as he retired the side in order. The junior would be tested in the ensuing sixth inning, but managed to limit Southeastern to one run in the sixth inning, ending his outing with consecutive strikeouts, stranding a runner at third in scoring position. 

Marian extended its lead in the top of the seventh inning to take a 5-2 lead, as Calvin Miller's lead-off double came across to score as the Knights loaded the bags and Nathan Pinarski was hit by a pitch for an RBI. Brady Armstrong was then tasked with shutting down the Fire in the seventh and eighth inning, having strong success in the seventh as he retired the side in order. Armstrong was unable to match his success in the eighth, walking and hitting a batter before allowing a bunt single to load the bases. Marian called on Kaeb Stebbins to get out of the jam, getting a strikeout to pick up the first out, however, he could pick up three consecutive outs, as a walk, hit batter, and sacrifice fly allowed Southeastern to tie the contest 5-5.

As the game stood tied entering the ninth inning, Southeastern limited Marian as they faced the minimum, while Stebbins rebounded nicely, retiring the bottom of the ninth in order to force extra innings. In the top of the 10th inning, a lead-off walk drawn by Nathan Pinarski started a five-run rally cry, as the bases quickly loaded before River Pecina slammed a go-ahead RBI single. Calvin Miller then delivered a two-run single to extend the lead to three, and Pecina later scored on a balk. Aiden Kerr put the finishing touches on the scoring, doubling to right to give Marian a 10-5 lead after Judah Hennessy crossed the dish.

After logging the RBI double, Kerr made the change from catcher to pitcher, taking on the task of closer as Marian looked to seal the win. Kerr immediately forced a groundout, and after seeing two men reach base, the now-pitcher forced a game-ending double play, closing down Marian's upset 10-5 win over No. 3 Southeastern. 

Brayden Coffey led the charge at the plate with a 3-6 game, scoring one run, while Calvin Miller had a 2-5 game with two RBI and two runs scored. Cole McManus led the team with three RBI in the win, and Aiden Kerr had a 3-6 game, pitching and catching in the win. Evan Cooke logged a no-decision with five hits and two runs allowed, striking out five against five batters walked. Kaeb Stebbins (1-0) earned the win in relief, pitching two innings, and Kerr finished off his two-way performance with a scoreless 10th frame, allowing one hit.

The ranked victory is Marian's first since April 20, 2023, when the Knights belted their then-record six home runs in a 16-6 run-rule win over No. 21 Taylor. Marian's win is also the program's first over a top-five opponent in team history. 

Marian finishes their series against Southeastern on Saturday, playing game three of the series at 11:00 a.m., while game four is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.

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