Box Score

With the season about to enter its most important part, the Muhlenberg baseball team is hitting its stride.

The Mules extended their winning streak to a season-high three games with a 9-3 win at Swarthmore, climbing back to .500 in the Centennial Conference heading into tomorrow's Senior Day doubleheader against Gettysburg. With six games remaining in the CC regular season, Muhlenberg (12-13, 6-6) are a half-game behind the Bullets for the fourth and final playoff spot.

After scoring more than eight runs only once in the first 23 games of the season, the Mules did it for the second day in a row. Senior Jimmy Cody led the 11-hit attack with three hits, while junior Andrew Rava was 2-for-3 with three RBI.

Cody's double drove in the Mules' first run of the game, answering a Garnet run in the bottom of the second. Swarthmore (17-11, 4-8) went ahead 3-2 in the bottom of the third but did not score again.

Senior Nick Gies pitched the first six innings to pick up his first win of the season, and Seth Fenster got the final nine outs for his second career save. Fenster allowed four baserunners in his three innings but induced two double plays, one of which he started himself to end the seventh.

Cody tripled with one out in the fifth and scored the tying run on a single by senior Nick Kennedy. It was the second extra-base hit of the game for Cody and his 16th of the season - one off the CC lead.

Muhlenberg sent 18 batters to the plate in the next two innings, scoring six runs despite the fact that only four of them hit the ball out of the infield. The Mules manufactured the go-ahead run in the sixth when senior Danny Usewick led off with a walk, stole second, stole third on the front end of a double steal with senior Michael Giordano and scored on a sacrifice fly by sophomore John Icaza.

Senior Nick Plinio had two hits in the five-run seventh, leading off with an infield hit to short. A misplayed bunt, two hit batters and two fielder's choices later, Muhlenberg had two more runs. An infield single by Icaza brought in the third run of the inning to make it 7-3, and Rava (pictured above) delivered a two-out, bases-loaded single up the middle for two more runs.

Muhlenberg swept Swarthmore in the season series for the first ime since 2011.