TicketsCINCINNATI – Louisville native Ryan Nicholson belted a one-out single through the hole into right field to cap a wild come-from-behind win over the No. 5 Cardinals, 13-12, on Tuesday, March 30, 2021 in nonconference action at UC Baseball Stadium.
Nicholson's walk off scored pinch runner Josh Hegemann from third and set off a raucous celebration in center field to cap the four-hour, eight-minute marathon. Three-straight singles by Jace Mercer, Joey Bellini and Wyatt Stapp got the rally going with Stapp's poke up the middle scoring Mercer to tie the game up 12.
The Bearcats (11-10) trailed 8-2 in the middle of the fourth and 12-11 in the middle of the 10th. It was UC's first win over a ranked foe since Oregon State in the NCAA Regional on June 1, 2019.
Louisville (16-7) showed their mettle late, tying the game up at 11-11 after a two-out double by Trey Leonard in the top of the eighth to score Lucas Dunn. UC had taken an 11-10 lead in the bottom of the seventh on back-to-back home runs by Eric Santiago and Joe Powell.
UofL's Christian Knapczyk's had a one-out sacrifice fly in the top of the 10th which scored Lucas Dunn and set up Nicholson's walk-off heroics.
Beau Keathley (1-0) picked up the win in a two-inning relief appearance. Kaleb Corbett took the loss, falling to 1-1. The teams combined to use 13 pitchers. Offensively, the teams tallied 25 runs, 29 hits and four home runs, two by UC's Eric Santiago.
NOTABLE
• Santiago was 3-for-5, belting a pair of homers, scoring three runs and totaling five runs batted in. It was the first two home-run game of his career.
• Nicholson walked, scored two runs and picked up a pair of hits, including the game-winning RBI single.
• Mercer finished 2-for-5 with two runs scored, two RBIs and a home run, his fifth of the season.
UP NEXT
The Bearcats will open up American Athletic Conference play this weekend, heading to East Carolina to face the No. 11 Pirates at Clark-LeClair Stadium. The series starts Thursday at 4 p.m. ET, features a Friday doubleheader starting at 1 p.m. and closes out Saturday with a 1 p.m. first pitch. The game Thursday and Friday's twin bill will air on ESPN+ while Saturday's finale will be streamed on ECUPirates.com. Live stats for the four-game set are available on BearcatStats.com.
SEASON TICKETS ON SALE NOW
Baseball season-ticket packages for 2021 are on sale, priced at $50 for adults and $30 for youths (aged 4-12), seniors (age 65 and up), UC faculty and staff and members of the military. Get your season tickets to lock in your seats! Make your purchase online.
Make your purchase online today! Contact the Bearcats Ticket Office at 1-877-CATS-TIX with any questions.
FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For all the latest information on Cincinnati baseball, please visit GoBEARCATS.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow UC baseball (@GoBearcatsBase) and Coach Googins (@CoachGoogs) on Twitter. You can also find the Bearcats on Instagram and Facebook.
Nicholson's walk off scored pinch runner Josh Hegemann from third and set off a raucous celebration in center field to cap the four-hour, eight-minute marathon. Three-straight singles by Jace Mercer, Joey Bellini and Wyatt Stapp got the rally going with Stapp's poke up the middle scoring Mercer to tie the game up 12.
The Bearcats (11-10) trailed 8-2 in the middle of the fourth and 12-11 in the middle of the 10th. It was UC's first win over a ranked foe since Oregon State in the NCAA Regional on June 1, 2019.
Louisville (16-7) showed their mettle late, tying the game up at 11-11 after a two-out double by Trey Leonard in the top of the eighth to score Lucas Dunn. UC had taken an 11-10 lead in the bottom of the seventh on back-to-back home runs by Eric Santiago and Joe Powell.
UofL's Christian Knapczyk's had a one-out sacrifice fly in the top of the 10th which scored Lucas Dunn and set up Nicholson's walk-off heroics.
Beau Keathley (1-0) picked up the win in a two-inning relief appearance. Kaleb Corbett took the loss, falling to 1-1. The teams combined to use 13 pitchers. Offensively, the teams tallied 25 runs, 29 hits and four home runs, two by UC's Eric Santiago.
⬇️🔟
— Cincinnati Baseball (@GoBearcatsBASE) March 31, 2021
WALK. IT. OFF. 😤@rynicholson25 is the hero as the #Bearcats topple #7 Louisville in extra innings 👏👏👏
🐾 13 | 🔴 12 pic.twitter.com/PilCu5s1mM
NOTABLE
• Santiago was 3-for-5, belting a pair of homers, scoring three runs and totaling five runs batted in. It was the first two home-run game of his career.
• Nicholson walked, scored two runs and picked up a pair of hits, including the game-winning RBI single.
• Mercer finished 2-for-5 with two runs scored, two RBIs and a home run, his fifth of the season.
UP NEXT
The Bearcats will open up American Athletic Conference play this weekend, heading to East Carolina to face the No. 11 Pirates at Clark-LeClair Stadium. The series starts Thursday at 4 p.m. ET, features a Friday doubleheader starting at 1 p.m. and closes out Saturday with a 1 p.m. first pitch. The game Thursday and Friday's twin bill will air on ESPN+ while Saturday's finale will be streamed on ECUPirates.com. Live stats for the four-game set are available on BearcatStats.com.
SEASON TICKETS ON SALE NOW
Baseball season-ticket packages for 2021 are on sale, priced at $50 for adults and $30 for youths (aged 4-12), seniors (age 65 and up), UC faculty and staff and members of the military. Get your season tickets to lock in your seats! Make your purchase online.
Make your purchase online today! Contact the Bearcats Ticket Office at 1-877-CATS-TIX with any questions.
FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For all the latest information on Cincinnati baseball, please visit GoBEARCATS.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow UC baseball (@GoBearcatsBase) and Coach Googins (@CoachGoogs) on Twitter. You can also find the Bearcats on Instagram and Facebook.