3rd inning dooms Johns Hopkins baseball in 16-7 NCAA Division III CWS loss

In the span of a sitcom, everything changed for Johns Hopkins baseball.

And there was hardly anything amusing.In a third inning that took 35 minutes to complete, the top-seeded Blue Jays surrendered nine hits and 12 runs en route to suffering a shocking 16-7 setback to No.

8 seed Messiah Friday afternoon in an NCAA Division III College World Series first-round game at Classic Auto Group Park in Eastlake, Ohio.The loss snapped a 26-game winning streak for Johns Hopkins (44-4) and was the programs most lopsided since an 18-8 throttling by Bethel on March 16, 2024.

The 16 runs allowed were the most in a negative result since a 16-10 setback to Catholic on April 17, 2024.The outcome might have been unanticipated by a team that had won 44 of 47 games prior to Friday and has been ranked No.

1 in the country for most of the season.Certainly didnt turn out the way we were hoping, but they barreled everything we threw at them in the third inning, coach Bob Babb said.

We couldnt get them out.

Everything we threw, they put a barrel on, and every ball they hit seemed to be where we were not positioned, and they just built on their momentum.

You could tell they were going up to the plate with a lot of confidence.

Got to give them a lot of credit.

They did what they had to do to win the game.

Theyre hitting the ball so well.The Blue Jays actually sprinted to a 3-0 lead on the strength of a two-run home run by graduate student catcher Caleb Cyr in the first inning and a solo shot by graduate student Jimmy Stevens in the second.But the good vibes unraveled when the Falcons came to the plate in the top of the third inning.

From sophomore shortstop Nick Moyers opening solo home run to sophomore third baseman Drew Hursts two-RBI single, they lashed nine hits and 12 runs.Messiah (37-14) took advantage of four walks, three errors and two wild pitches and had every player except for junior left fielder Luke Ott make two plate appearances each.

Senior second baseman Jarrett Gordon drove in two runs with a single and scored twice, senior designated hitter Dylan Beard plated two runs with a single, and junior centerfielder Isaiah Parido drove in a run with a double and scored twice.Gordon, who went 3-for-6 with two RBIs, said he and his Falcons teammates were not worried by the initial 3-0 deficit.We know how to get punched in the mouth and respond, he said.

Theres no panic after going down 3-0.Messiah chased away graduate student starting pitcher Quinn Rovner (7-1), who left without getting an out in the third and ended with a 5.98 earned-run average.

Junior Cole Jefferson was tagged with five earned runs in 1/3 of an inning and sophomore Camden Curley gave up two runs before getting two outs to end Johns Hopkins misery.Johns Hopkins baseball fell, 16-7, to Messiah in its first game of the Division III College World Series.

The Blue Jays allowed 12 runs in the third inning and couldn't conjure up a miraculous comeback.

(Courtesy of Johns Hopkins)Johns Hopkins baseball fell, 16-7, to Messiah in its first game of the Division III College World Series.

The Blue Jays allowed 12 runs in the third inning and couldn't conjure up a miraculous comeback.

(Courtesy of Johns Hopkins)Johns Hopkins baseball fell, 16-7, to Messiah in its first game of the Division III College World Series.

The Blue Jays allowed 12 runs in the third inning and couldn't conjure up a miraculous comeback.

(Courtesy of Johns Hopkins)Show Caption1 of 3Johns Hopkins baseball fell, 16-7, to Messiah in its first game of the Division III College World Series.

The Blue Jays allowed 12 runs in the third inning and couldn't conjure up a miraculous comeback.

(Courtesy of Johns Hopkins)ExpandAfter the Falcons eruption, the Blue Jays slept-walked their way through three innings before Stevens hit a two-run home run his team-leading 20th of the season in the sixth.

Babb acknowledged that the team was bewildered at the stunning turn of events.When you give up 12 runs in an inning, it takes the wind out of your sails, he said.

I think for sure, for the next couple innings, we were kind of in shock.

What it also does is, it makes you play a little more conservatively, and we couldnt attempt any steals at that point.

It just puts a lot of pressure on every at-bat, every pitch, and it changes the way you can play the game.

I think those couple innings after they scored 12, we were shocked, and it shortened the game.

And then I think we kind of bounced back a little bit and had some chances from the sixth inning on.

But again, we had to be conservative, and its just not the way we usually play.In addition to Gordon, Messiah got offensive contributions from Hurst and Ott, who finished with three RBIs each.

And freshman pitcher Zachary Harris, an Ellicott City resident and Centennial graduate, improved to 9-2 on the strength of allowing three earned runs, striking out four batters, and compiling a 3.51 ERA.Related ArticlesMaryland mens basketball revamped on the fly.

Will it work? | ANALYSISNCAA Tournament could expand to 72 or 76 teams, with a decision hoped for in the next few monthsBaylor University football player killed in shooting: reportsSon of a Terps legend commits to Maryland mens basketballMike Preston: Maryland mens lacrosse lacks firepower in title loss | COMMENTARYThe Falcons who will meet No.

4 seed Endicott (44-4) on Saturday at 1:15 p.m.

continued their Cinderella ways.

They were the No.

3 seed in the four-team regional which they won and upset favorite Salisbury in last weekends Super Regional.The story thats being written right now is pretty incredible, and to see these guys just sell out to that is pretty awesome, coach Phill Shallenberger said.Johns Hopkins will clash with No.

5 seed Kean (40-10) on Saturday at 10 a.m.

and cant afford another loss if it wants to send the retiring Babb out with his first national championship.

Stevens, who went 2-for-5 with three RBIs, said he has faith in the entire team to respond to this adversity.I think we trust our depth, he said.

We have a lot of really good players on this team, and I think as leaders, Caleb and I and some of the old guys on this team trust every single one of them.

All of those guys are going to be important over the next couple of days.

Well just take it at-bat by at-bat, inning by inning, and I have the utmost confidence in every single one of those guys to do a good job on the field.Babb echoed that sentiment.Weve only lost four games all year, which means weve won a lot of games, he said.

So to win four more to get to the [finals] of the World Series is certainly not out of the question.

It wont be easy, but we saved a lot of good arms today, and well be able to throw some good arms out there the next few days.

Our team has always bounced back.

The strength of our team has been the resiliency of our team.

We seem to fall behind a lot throughout the course of the year not by giving up 12 runs in one inning, but there have been many games where we were down four or five runs and then came back.

So I have a lot of confidence in these guys, and I think well make a good showing in the next few days.Have a news tip? Contact Edward Lee at [email protected], 410-332-6200 and x.com/EdwardLeeSun..

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