RICHMOND, Ind. — They've made it to the top.

For the first time since joining the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference in the 2011 season, the Quakers find themselves in first place after posting a 7-6 win over Bluffton University on Tuesday in Randal R. Sadler Stadium.

Earlham is now 18-5 overall and 8-4 in the conference, which has the Quakers tied with Bluffton (15-9, 8-4) and Anderson University (16-6, 8-4).

"It's good to be where we are at right now," Earlham Head Coach Steve Sakosits said of being in the hunt for the conference title. "We are putting ourselves in a good position right now because we are beating teams that will be there at the end. We've just got to keep doing it."

The win also put Sakosits to within one victory of Tom Parkevich, who leads on the all-time Earlham wins list with 80. With 18 wins, the Quakers now have the fifth most victories in school history for a season.

The Beavers took an early 1-0 lead with a run in the fourth before the Quakers rallied by scoring five times in the bottom of the frame.

A RBI single by Nate Lynch tied the game and then later in the inning Devin Spurgon blasted a grand slam over the Maroon Monster in the left to make it 5-1.

"Devin needed that," Sakosits said. "When Devin plays well it makes out lineup that much better."
Bluffton fought back with two runs in the fifth and three more in the sixth to tie the contest at 6-6.

In their half of the sixth, the Quakers took the lead for good on a run-scoring single by Brennan Laird.

"They are resilient," Sakosits said. "Winning teams find ways to win and our guys are doing it."
Bryce Rainey started on the mound for the Quakers and left the game with one out in the sixth. Garrett York (3-0) picked up the victory by finishing the sixth.

Matt Mathies tossed two scoreless innings to set up for Matt Brankle, who closed the contest by blanking the Beavers in the ninth for his fifth save of the season.
Lynch led the Quakers with two hits.

The Quakers are on the road for a HCAC series this weekend at Franklin College.

"This weekend is going to be tough against Franklin," Sakosits said. "They play well against us every single time."

The opener against the Grizzlies is on Friday at 4 p.m. The teams wrap up the series with a doubleheader on Saturday at noon.