INDIANAPOLIS - The Marian baseball team ended their weekend series against Goshen College with a bang Sunday afternoon, completing a four-game sweep over the Maple Leafs with a walk-off home run from Cole McManus. Marian's 11-8 and 6-5 victories on Sunday improved the team's overall record to 8-10, as their win streak improves to five games.

GAME 1 | Marian 11-8 Goshen
Goshen brought in the first run of the day in their first trip to the plate, as a pair of base hits off starter Damien Wallace gave the Maple Leafs an early lead. Marian would retaliate in the home half, as they ignited their offense with a pair of walks drawn by Cole McManus and Zach Bale. Hector Corona would load the bases as the inning progressed, setting up Kameron Salazar who continued his strong weekend with a two-RBI single. 

Marian held their lead for the remainder of the game after Salazar's, getting great defensive plays in the second inning before scoring twice more in the home half, with Johnny Roeder's RBI single scoring one run and Zach Bale's double down the line bringing in a second. Goshen would scratch back at Marian's 4-1 lead in the top of the third inning as a lead-off walk to Nick Padron set up Axell Espino Montero, who delivered a two-run home run off Wallace to make it a one-score game. After the home run, Wallace dialed back in, retiring five consecutive batters on strikes, keeping Marian in the lead. 

In the home half of the third inning, Marian took advantage of an error as Salazar reached base, scoring on Elijah Kelly's RBI double. Nathan Pinarski would drive in Kelly on an RBI single, and Johnny Roeder finished the scoring in the inning with a sacrifice fly. Kelly continued his day at the plate with an RBI single in the bottom of the fourth, pushing Marian's lead to five runs at an 8-3 count. Chris Adams took over on the mound in the fifth inning for Wallace, and yielded a run as he surrendered three consecutive hits upon entering the game, before easing in with a pair of strikeouts to protect the 8-4 lead.

Adams continued his strikeout pace in the sixth inning as he retired the side himself, giving up a pair of free passes and an RBI single between punchout two and three. The Maple Leaf score brought the guests within three runs, but Marian would immediately get the runs back as Zach Bale hammered a solo home run to lead off the home side of the sixth, while Kelly recorded an RBI sacrifice fly. Adams finished his relief outing strong with two scoreless innings in the seventh and eighth, adding three more strikeouts to his total on the day.

Calvin Miller added a run for the Knights in the bottom of the eighth inning to tack on an insurance score, pushing Marian's lead to six runs. Carter King came on to close out the game in the ninth inning, working through some struggles as he yielded three runs before getting a fly out to complete the 11-8 victory.

Marian had 12 base hits in the win, with Zach Bale, Josh Lamb, Kameron Salazar, Elijah Kelly, and Nathan Pinarski recording two each. Kelly had a team-high three RBI in the win, and Bale recorded his fourth home run of the season in the win. On the mound, Wallace earned a no-decision throwing four innings of three-hit ball, allowing three runs and two walks. Chris Adams (1-2) earned the win in relief, striking out eight batters over four innings. Adams allowed two runs and four hits in his relief stint.

GAME 2 | Marian 6-5 Goshen
In game two, Marian had to overcome struggles at the plate, as they were no-hit through five complete innings after previously recording 31 base hits in the first three games of the series. Goshen on the other hand, opened the game strong scoring in the first inning for the second consecutive game, as a one-out double started their scoring chance. A walk and a single off Seth Hogg loaded the bases, and with two outs the Knights aggression failed to reap reward, as Jake Dill's back-pick attempt at first base was thrown in the dirt, allowing the guests to get on the board.

Marian clawed back in the bottom of the first inning as Cole McManus turned his one-out walk into a run, getting to third on a throwing error by pitcher Josh Murphy and scoring on Zach Bale's RBI groundout. Murphy and Hogg settled in after each allowing a run in the first inning, pitching scoreless second, third, and fourth innings. Hogg picked up four strikeouts while allowing only a single and walk over the three inning stretch, while his counterpart Murphy retired the side in order twice, allowing a lone walk in the third inning to Johnny Roeder.

Hogg's scoreless streak would snap in the fifth inning as a lead-off single for Nate Muriel came across to score, as a pair of infield groundouts successfully gave Goshen the lead. Murphy retired the Knights in order again in the home half to keep a 2-1 lead, and gained support in the top of the sixth inning as an unearned run came across to score against Jayson Cottrell. The southpaw got out of the inning stranding runners on the corners, and in the home half the offense finally came to life. Johnny Roeder sparked the team with a lead-off walk, with the first hit of the game coming two batters later on Zach Bale's double. Roeder moved to third and scored on a single from Kameron Salazar, however the Knights were not able to get the game-tying run as Dill grounded into an inning-ending double play.

The Knights trailed 3-2 entering the final inning, and saw their deficit grow as a triple for Justin Dambruck and sacrifice fly from Fernando Santana off Dylan Holmes brought in two more runs. Needing three runs to tie and four to win entering their final at bats, the Knights offense got a lift from freshman Calvin Miller, who opened the frame with a double. Elijah Kelly singled to move the rookie to third, with both runners getting a free base on a passed ball. Miller scored on the errant throw to make it a two-run difference, and Nathan Pinarski drew a walk to bring the winning run to the plate. Cole McManus dug in after Johnny Roeder struck out, waiting for his pitch before unloading on a 3-2 fastball, driving a towering shot to right field, walking-off the Maple Leafs with his game-winning three-run home run.

The walk-off win lifted Marian to 5-3 in the Crossroads League, as McManus put the stamp on the 6-5 victory. The starting right fielder went 1-3 in the win with his home run being one of five hits for the team, drawing a walk and producing three RBI. Hogg took a no-decision on the mound in the win, allowing five hits and two runs in his five innings pitched. Although he allowed two runs in the seventh, Dylan Holmes (1-0) recorded the win, claiming his first collegiate victory with a pair of strikeouts. 

The Knights will extend their homestand to Wednesday afternoon, when they play host to Lourdes University for their final scheduled non-conference game. First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. from MU Ballpark.

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