Box Score
Langhorne, PA - Cairn sat in pole position to record their fourth win of the season, taking a 7-3 lead into the top of the eighth inning before St. Joseph's-Brooklyn exploded for six runs. After slipping behind 9-7, the Highlanders couldn't muster the offense to recover and suffered their first defeat since sweepeing Christendom College on Saturday.
The Highlanders got off to a great start with three runs in the bottom of the first. Senior
Jeremy McAlack hit a lead-off single to get the offense going. McAlack advanced on back to back ground outs, but with two outs left Cairn in danger of leaving McAlack stranded on base. Rookie
Caleb Lang made sure that didn't happen by blasting his first-career triple to right center and giving Cairn a 1-0 lead. The Highlanders weren't done though. After
Jon Sanville walked,
Austin Arseneau made it a second triple for the Highlanders, his third of the season, driving in two more runs for Cairn, pushing their lead to 3-0.
Things stayed that way until the third inning when the Bears put together two runs to cut things to 3-2. But the Highlanders responded in the bottom of the inning with another run, regaining a two-run lead at 4-2.
Leading 4-3 heading into the bottom of the seventh with the top of the order up, the Highlanders added some insurance runs to their late-game lead. McAlack was once again one of the catalysts. He would start things off with his second hit of the game and reaching second on a
Chad Hollinger ground out.
Kenneth Searle reached base on a Hit by Pitch, before Caleb Lang knocked in his eighth RBI of the season with a double. With runners in scoring position, Jon Sanville earned an RBI with his single to bring home Earle and advance Lang to third. Cairn made it 7-3 when sophomore
Eric Hodges drove in Lang for his fourth RBI of the season.
With only six outs away from their fourth win, St. Joseph's rallied to spoil the host afternoon. While only managing three hits, the Bears scored six runs in a top of the eighth that couldn't end early enough for the Highlanders, giving the visitors a 9-7 lead.
The Highlanders were only able to put one player on base in the final two innings as they fell after looking in control for most of the afternoon.
Freshman pitcher
Joey Nieves-Markee got the start for Cairn and came six outs away from earning his first career win in 7.1 innings pitched. He struck out four and gave up only four hits.
McAlack went 2 for 5 with 2 runs, topped only by Caleb Lang who finished 3 for 5 with 3 runs and 2 RBIs. Austin Arseneau earned two hits on five at bats, knocking in two runs.
Lang leads the Highlanders with seven doubles on the season while Arseneau has three triples.
The defeat drops Cairn to 3-12 on the season.
This Monday, the Highlanders will beging a three game series with Colonial States Athletic rivals Centenary College. Cairn's lone conference win in 2012 came against the Cyclones.
