ST. LOUIS – Maryville baseball won a three-hour and 40-minute affair with an 18-17 walk-off victory over Webster University on Tuesday night. The Saints posted seven runs in the bottom of the eighth to overcome a four-run deficit and finished off the comeback win in the bottom of the ninth inning.
 
Webster Recap
Maryville took a first-inning lead on an RBI single from Matt Schuler and a bases-loaded walk from Camden Ruby. Webster responded with five runs on three hits and three free passes in the top of the second.
 
Aaris Stolte sent a ball over the left fielder's head for a lead off double in the bottom of the second and scored on a Colin Bergmann RBI single into centerfield with one out. Nathaniel Martinez restored a three-run Gorlok lead with an RBI single of his own in the top of the third.
 
The Saints loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom half of the third for Stolte, making his third appearance of the season. The sophomore from Hannibal, Mo., got a pitch he could handle and hammered it over the left field wall for his first career grand slam and the second home run of this career.
 
James Theodore, in the middle of a four-RBI performance, tied the game for the visitors in the fourth with a single. Webster continued to pile on runs in the fifth, tacking on six on five hits to push the advantage to 13-7.
 
Ruby walked to lead off the bottom of the fifth in front of Matt Arnold who tanked a hanging breaking pitch out of the ballpark to cut into the deficit. Maryville picked up another run on an RBI single from Dominic Sharp in the sixth before Evan Evola drove in the 14^th Webster run in the seventh.
 
Still trailing 14-10 heading into the bottom of the eighth, the Saints put two runners on to lead off the inning and plated a run on another single from Sharp. Stolte drove in his fifth run with a ground out, Jack Zebig was intentionally walked to load the bases, and Bergmann tied the game with a two-run single. A wild pitch in the next at-bat gave Maryville a 15-14 lead.
 
Still threatening in the eighth and now facing a new pitcher, Schuler and Jacob Hager both walked for the second time in the inning to force home a 16^th run. A throwing error capped off a seven-run frame for the Saints.
 
Three outs away from victory in the ninth, the home team gave up a double, a single, and a game-tying three-run blast to Martinez to knot the game at 17 all. Nathan Beaton was called on out of the bullpen and immediately worked a pair of looking strikeouts with dotted sinkers that sent the game to the bottom of the ninth.
 
Ruby led off the final frame by reaching on a throwing error from the shortstop. Arnold laid down a bunt to the pitcher hoping to advance the runner, but the pitcher threw the ball into the corner near the Maryville bullpen to allow Ruby to score from first for the game-winning run.
 
Winning Pitcher: Nathan Beaton (1-0)
Losing Pitcher: J. Arsenault (2-2)
  
Batting Leaders
Aaris Stolte: 2-for-5, Grand Slam, 2B, 5 RBI, 2 R
Colin Bergmann: 3-for-5, 3 RBI, R, BB
Matt Arnold: 1-for-4, HR, 2 RBI, 3 R, 2 BB
 
Records:
Maryville: 28-14, 20-8 GLVC
Webster: 16-15, 8-6 SLIAC
 
What's Next?
The Saints hit the road this weekend for a four-game conference series at second-place Drury Univeristy. The first pitch of game one is set for Friday, April 26, at 5 p.m.
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