ASTON, Pa. – In a unique "road" game at Bruder Field, the Neumann University Baseball team defeated the Gwynedd Mercy University Griffins, 8-7 in 10 innings, in an Atlantic East Conference game on Friday afternoon.
 
Neumann got on the board first using a two-out rally in the opening inning. Ryan Lopez singled to centerfield and advanced to second when Isaiah Payton drove a base hit to left. Andrew Curran drove in Lopez with an RBI single to right field, giving the Knights a 1-0 lead.
 
Shawn Vega led off the top of the third with a single up the middle and promptly stole second. He scored when Lopez singled to double the lead. Payton followed with an RBI single of his own to score Lopez. Three batters later, Josh Finger walked and Tyler Kilmer plated Payton with a base hit to center, giving Neumann a four run advantage.
 
In the fifth, it was another two-out rally that next to the next run. After Tyler Kilmer reached on a fielder's choice. Nick Glebocki reached on an error, pushing Kilmer to second. Brandon Colon hit an RBI single to left, scoring Kilmer, and the Knights had a 5-0 lead.
 
Gwynedd Mercy slowly started to push back with a run in the bottom of the inning, after an error. They added a second run in the seventh using a sacrifice fly. In the eighth, the Griffins sent ten men to the plate and scored five runs to take a 7-5 lead, thanks to a two-run single, a two-run triple, and an RBI single.
 
Down but not out, Neumann clawed back into the game in the ninth. With one out, Kilmer singled and Glebocki was hit by a pitch. They both moved up 90 feet on a passed ball, putting the tying run in scoring position. After a strikeout made it two outs, Vega pushed a single into left to tie the game at seven, forcing extra innings.
 
Curran led off the 10^th with a single and Chris Balshuweit pushed pinch-runner, Thomas Carroll, to second on a sacrifice bunt. Finger hit a grounder to short, which was bobbled. As the fielder recovered the ball, he threw to third but it got away, and Carroll scored to give the Knights the lead and the win.
 
Of the 17 Neumann hits, 16 were singled as Lopez had a big game offensively, going 4 for 6 with a steal, an RBI, and two runs scored. Payton was 3 for 5 with a double, a walk, a run batted in, and a run score. Vega drove in two runs as he went 2 for 6 with a run and a steal. Curran and Kilmer also had multi-hit games, each going 2 for 5.
 
Jonathan Baker got the start on the mound and was strong through six innings. He allowed one unearned run on six hits and three walks, while striking out eight in the no-decision. Aidan Jackson pitched one inning of scoreless relief , giving up a walk and a couple of hits. Balshuweit, who started the game in right field, came in the pitch in the ninth and earned the win, facing the last four batters of the game without incident. He improves to 2-0.
 
Neumann (10-15, 1-6 Atlantic East) will return to action on Sunday at noon for a doubleheader against Gwynedd Mercy, completing this weekend's three-game series. First pitch for game one is scheduled for 12:00 PM.