TUCSON, Ariz. - A walk-off pinch hit single from Ethan Pawlak capped a wild 13-12 comeback victory for the Allegheny baseball team over Carroll University in the opening game of the Gators' spring break trip to Tucson, Arizona.
 
After jumping out to an early 5-0 lead, the Gators found themselves trailing 12-7 in the seventh inning.  A two-out grand slam from Brandon Pouch would pull the Gators back to within one, before Pawlak sealed the win with his RBI single to right field in the ninth.
 
The Gators roared out to a 2-0 lead before recording an out in the bottom of the first.  Cullen Flaherty led off the inning with a walk, while Pouch was hit by a pitch.  A wild pitch then moved both runners into scoring position, before Tommy Cannon cracked a double into the left field corner to clear the bases.  With two outs, Luke Chutko then came through, bouncing a single into left to plate Cannon and give the Gators a three-run lead.
 
Two innings later, the Gators added on.  Dan Bonnett led off the bottom of the fourth by legging out an infield single, and promptly scored on Chutko's RBI double to the left center gap.  Noah Shannon then traded placed with Chutko with a two-base hit into the left field corner to give the Gators a 5-0 lead.
 
The Pioneers got one run back in the top of the fourth, before stringing together a lengthy fifth inning, during which they sent eight batters to the plate and scored four runs on five hits to tie the game at 5-all, with the big blow a two-run triple to the right field corner by Dylan Callahan.
 
Allegheny wasted little time in re-gaining the lead, as Tyler Wagner smacked a home run to left center field with one out in the bottom of the fifth to go back in front 6-5.
 
The lead was short-lived, as Carroll struck for three runs with two outs in the top of the sixth.  Deagan quickly set down the first two batters of the frame, but then four straight Pioneers recorded a hit, with Hunter Frey stroking a two-run triple and AJ Johnson a run-scoring double to go in front 8-6.  Dylan Callahan followed with a double of his own to plate Johnson, and up the advantage to three runs.
 
The Gators cut into the deficit in the bottom of the sixth, as Keegan Phillips led off with an infield single, advanced to second on an errand throw, took third on a wild pitch, and scored on a Flaherty sacrifice fly to cut it to 9-7.
 
Carroll added on with three runs in the top of the seventh - all with two outs - on RBI doubles from Sam Harmeyer and Frey to go up 12-7.
 
The Gators refused to go away, using a big two-out hit of their own in the bottom half of the seventh. Chutko drew a leadoff walk, but Carroll quickly got two outs.  Phillips kept the inning alive with a single, and Flaherty drew a free pass to load the bases.  One pitch later, Pouch launched a blast down the right field line and over the wall for a grand slam - his first career home run - that again made it a one-run game, 12-11.
 
In the bottom of the ninth, Chase Davis legged out an infield single, before Phillips was hit by a pitch to put runners on first and second.  After Flaherty put down a sacrifice bunt to move Davis and Phillips up 90 feet, Pouch drew a walk to load the bases.  On the subsequent pitch, Cannon was drilled by a fastball to plate Davis and tie the game at 12.
 
Sidelined for nearly two weeks due to injury, Pawlak was summoned from the bench for the pinch-hit appearance.  After working a 2-2 count, the veteran cracked a line drive that found the grass in right field, scoring Phillips with the game-winning tally.
 
Eleven different players accounted for Allegheny's 15 hits in the win, with Cannon finishing 3-for-4 with three RBIs, Chutko 2-for-3 with two RBIs, and Phillips 2-for-4 with three runs scored. Chutko also drew two walks in the game, as he reached safely in four of his five trips to the plate.
 
Cy Perry threw 2 1/3 shutout innings to earn his first win of the season, as he allowed just one hit with one strikeout.  Jarod Deagan started for the Gators and worked into the sixth, taking the no-decision.
 
Carroll (4-2) ended with a slim 16-15 advantage in the hit column, with Harmeyer, Frey, and Johnson each tallying three.  Frey also drove in a game-high five RBIs.
 
Logan Johnson took the loss on the hill for the Pioneers, allowing two runs on two hits with a walk and a hit batter.
 
The Gators (2-4) will return to action on Monday, March 19, with a 1 p.m. (Eastern) doubleheader against Saint John's (Minn.).

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