The University of Redlands baseball team continued its Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) schedule on Friday afternoon by taking on the Chapman University Panthers on a beautiful day at the Yard. Despite scraping their way back multiple times late in the contest, the Bulldogs fell to the Panthers by a score of 8-9 in 11 innings.

Redlands notched a run or more in each of the three opening frames to answer Chapman's three-run first inning. Senior right-fielder Connor Hancock (Burbank, CA) initiated the Bulldogs' scoring with a single through the right side, bringing home sophomore second baseman Christopher Scalisi (Woodland Hills, CA) after he was issued a free pass. Junior third baseman Mark Tumlinson (Anaheim, CA) followed an inning later with a single to center field to plate junior first baseman Ryan Franklin (Manhattan Beach, CA), who led off the frame with a two-bagger to left center.

A three-run third stanza pushed the Bulldogs ahead by a score of 5-3, as junior left-fielder Mitch Samson (Orangevale, CA) squared up a double down the left-field line, plating Hancock and Franklin. Samson later came around to score on a pass ball.

Freshman ace Felix Minjarez (Riverside, CA) started the game for the Bulldogs but struggled due to minor command issues throughout the contest. Despite his early woes, the freshman hurler grinded through some tough innings, including one that required him to wiggle out of a bases-loaded jam. After giving up a triple, walk, and hit-by-pitch, Minjarez fanned the following two batters and produced a line-out to left field, preserving a 5-4 Redlands lead.

However, Chapman worked its way back into the contest to grab a 7-5 lead by the top of the sixth inning.

In a must-score scenario, the Bulldog bats came alive in the bottom of the ninth inning. Sophomore infielder Christian Conci (San Mateo, CA) dug into the box to lead off the stanza with a high-chopping ground ball that soared over the third baseman's head for a single. Junior designated hitter Tyler Shreve (Redlands, CA) followed by inside-outing a two-seam fastball on the inner half of the plate over the center-fielder's head for a triple, scoring Conci to trim the deficit to one run. Franklin kept things rolling with a sacrifice fly to right field to tie the game up on Shreve's run.

The drama continued in the 10th, as Chapman's David Basen laid down a suicide squeeze to regain the Panthers' advantage.

But the Bulldogs answered right back by using fundamental baseball to push across another tying run. After Tumlinson led off the inning by patiently drawing a walk, senior catcher Sean McMillan (Redwood City, CA), who is known for his clutch hitting, laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt to move Tumlinson into scoring position.

When asked about his bunt after the game, McMillan expressed the importance of understanding your role as a player.

"It's a team game. You have to do what it takes to win the game for the team," said McMillan. "You can't be selfish. The minute you become selfish, everything goes down the tube."

Senior shortstop Jordan Dresner (Etiwanda, CA) took advantage of McMillan's sacrifice bunt and laced a double down the left-field line, plating Tumlinson for the 8-8 tie.

But Chapman's Forrest Lieberman blasted a solo home run, forcing the Maroon and Gray to dig deep for yet another comeback.

Redlands had its chances to score in the 11th with runners on first and second, but came up short.

Freshman reliever Noah Jones (San Bernardino, CA) picked up the loss after tossing two innings.

Samson finished the day going 2-for-5 with a double and two RBI. Franklin matched his day at the plate with a 2-for-5 showing with a double and an RBI.

Despite the opening series loss, Head Coach Aaron Holley touched on the bright spots in the defeat.

"With our offense, they are not going to stop us from scoring runs," said Holley. "We expected to do what we did; come back and take the lead. In the later innings we just needed zeros, and we couldn't do it. "

Holley remained confident in his team's ability to respond in tomorrow's doubleheader at Chapman.

"We do everything well. We play good defense, we pitch great, and we hit great. It's about hanging our hat on what we do well and understanding a sense of urgency."

The Bulldogs complete the three-game series with a doubleheader against Chapman tomorrow at 11 a.m. in Orange.