David Walks Off Cougars for Gutsy Tournament Victory

CL Champs Central

MARION, Ind. – Mason David sent a single to deep center field Friday afternoon to cap a rollercoaster, 8-7 walk-off victory for No. 9 Taylor (43-8) over Mount Vernon Nazarene (33-19) in the Crossroads League Tournament.

The Trojans went back-and-forth with the Cougars early in the contest before MVNU seized control in the middle innings, ahead 5-2 through six frames. Up to that point, the TU bats mustered only four hits as the Purple and Grey's 11-game winning streak was in jeopardy.

But the Taylor offense came to life with a pair of doubles followed by a go-ahead two-run homer from Ben Kennedy in the seventh inning, and, after briefly seeing Mount Vernon take a 7-6 lead, TU tied the game back up at 7-7 going into the ninth inning.

With momentum on their side after Dalton Swinehart (3-1) recorded a pair of strikeouts in a scoreless top of the ninth, the Trojans led off the inning with a Kennedy walk and a well-executed sacrifice bunt from Fletcher Roemmich. Pinch-hitter Rylee Singleton singled to give TU runners on the corners with one out for David, and the senior All-American came through to plate Kennedy for the game winner.

Luke Picchiotti, who had a monster four-hit day, put Taylor on the board in the second inning with a game-tying solo homer to right field, making the score 1-1.

The Trojans generated enough traffic on the bases to tack on another run in the third, yet they trailed until their seventh-inning rally.

In that seventh frame, Sam Gladd and Luke Sutter doubled to the outfield gaps, and Picchiotti singled in a run to bring TU within one at 5-4. That's when Kennedy went the other way with his two-run shot that electrified the Trojan crowd and dugout.

MVNU knocked the ball around to take a 7-6 advantage in the top of the eighth, but Manning – who tallied his 200th career hit on Thursday – drove in the game-tying run a fielder's choice.

On the mound, Taylor pieced together its victory with Brody Fine starting the contest and piling up seven strikeouts in 3.2 innings. Nathan Frady was solid over the next 2.1 frames, allowing just one run before turning it over to Conner Miller, who tossed a scoreless seventh inning.

Miller ran into trouble in the eighth, but Swinehart punched out three Cougars in 1.2 innings and did not allow a run as he gave his lineup a chance to win it.

Top-seeded Taylor remains in the 2:30 p.m. time slot for Saturday's game, which is set to be played versus fourth-seeded Indiana Wesleyan (28-18). One win on Saturday for the No. 9 Trojans would send them to the CL Tournament Championship game on Monday, May 5.