SCORES: Earlham 7, Manchester 6
LOCATION: Richmond, Indiana – Sadler Stadium
RECORDS: Earlham 22-18 / Manchester 19-21

RICHMOND, Indiana – Earlham College's five-run sixth inning helped propel the fourth-seeded Quakers past seventh-seeded Manchester University, 7-6, in game one a best-of-three Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Baseball Tournament Opening Round series on Friday evening at Sadler Stadium.

The series will conclude on Saturday, May 15, at Sadler Stadium with game two starting at 12:00 p.m., followed by the "if necessary" game three approximately 30 minutes after the conclusion of the previous game.

Earlham (22-18) broke open a 2-2 game in the sixth, plating their five runs on a pair of hits and two Manchester errors. Maxwell Fries opened the frame with a walk, and a two-base Spartan error on Nathan Lancianese's grounder to third put both runners in scoring position. Isaiah Shake pushed the Quakers' first run of the frame across on a fielder's choice grounder, which allowed Fries to score on obstruction.

Christian Lancianese's base hit into center field allowed twin brother Nathan to score, giving Earlham a 4-2 advantage. Four batters later, Danny Dopp belted a triple to plate three runners and extend the Quakers' lead to 7-2.

Manchester scored three runs in the eighth to cut the Earlham lead to 7-5, including a solo home run by the Spartans' Joe Henschel.

The Spartans plated an additional run in the ninth to pull to within a single run, 7-6, and had a pair of runners aboard. Earlham reliever Domanick Michael induced a fly ball to left field to end the game and clinch the Quaker victory.

The game began with Earlham posting a pair of runs in the third on a Dopp double into center field that scored Marc Gendreau, with Dopp coming home later in the frame on a wild pitch to put the Quakers up 2-0. Manchester got one run back in the top of the fifth, then knotted the game 2-2 in the top of the sixth when Aidan Stevens singled home Zach White on a base hit to center.

Joey Gerbus got the start on the mound for Earlham and lasted seven inning on his way to the win, improving his record to 7-1. Gerbus allowed three earned runs on six hits while striking out three Spartan batters. Michael earned his eighth save of the season after closing out the ninth for the Quakers.

Dopp finished the day 2-for-3 with four RBI, allowing the senior from South Haven, Michigan, to claim the Earlham career RBI record. He finished the day with 140 runs batted in over his Earlham career, eclipsing the previous record of 138 held by Eric Elkus (2014-17).