Box Score College Baseball
Rider University 5, La Salle University 2 (8 innings)
PHILADELPHIA, PA—The Broncs scored four runs in the eighth and final inning (due to darkness) for a come-from-behind win at La Salle Tuesday in the second round of the Liberty Bell Classic. “This was a good win for us,” said Rider head coach Barry Davis.
The Broncs (9-15) will now play in the Liberty Bell Classic Title Game Tuesday, April 14 at Citizen's Bank Park. “That will be fun,” Davis said. “We're excited to go there.”
Rider defeated Lehigh in the first round of the Classic, while La Salle defeated Delaware.
Rider scored four runs in the eighth inning on three hits, including a two-run single by junior Patrick Murphy (McHenry, Ill./McHenry), and two La Salle errors to take a 5-2 lead. “Murphy's ball took a bad hop on the third baseman,” Davis said, “allowing us to score two.big runs.
La Salle (14-16) scored two runs in the seventh inning on a single, sacrifice bunt, a walk and a two-run double to take a 2-1 lead.
The Broncs broke a scoreless tie in the sixth inning when junior James Locklear (Hamilton, NJ/Steinert) singled, stole second and third and scored on a La Salle error. Locklear had two of Rider's six hits and scored twice. “He hit the ball the other way and stole a couple of bases for us,” Davis said. 'Those are things he can do to help us. He had a good day.”
Rider senior pitcher David Hafer (3-1), making his first start of the season, his 19th career start, pitched a season-high five and two-thirds scoreless innings, allowing three hits in the no-decision. “That was huge,” Davis said. “He was pitching against a very good hitting team and did a great job.”
Sophomore Tyler Kaiser (Moorestown, NJ/Moorestown), junior Jordan Leinweber (Castle Rock, CO/Douglas County) and senior Mike Parsons (Liverpool, NY) also collected hits.
Rider defeated La Salle 6-5 last year. Rider and La Salle were East Coast Conference rivals in the 1970s and early 1980s. The two teams have now met 54 times since the series began in 1968 with Rider winning 34. La Salle defeated Rider in the 1985 NCAA East Regional at South Carolina.
Rider plays at NJIT Wednesday at 6pm. “It will be good for us to play another night game,” Davis said. “We've played a few but we don't play that many during the season. If we get to the (MAAC) tournament we'll probably have to play at night so the experience is good.”
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