PHILADELPHIA – Fernando Garza (Laredo, Texas/Alexander) went 3-for-4 for the Philadelphia University baseball team fell to Chestnut Hill 12-8 in a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) contest Thursday afternoon on Alumni Field.

Philadelphia (12-16, 5-10 CACC) put together a two-out rally in the bottom of the fourth to take a 4-2 lead. With Hector Gonzalez (Laredo, Texas/United) on third, Desmond Drummond (Philadelphia, Pa./GAMP) ripped a Dominic Raia pitch into deep right field for a triple to put Philadelphia on the board.  After Garza drew a walk to keep the inning alive, David McTaggart (Wilmington, Del./St. Elizabeth) hit a grounder to first that when through the legs of Patrick Campion allowing Drummond to score and tie the score. Lou Karcanes delievered a single to left field, plating Garza and McTaggart to put Philadelphia ahead by two.

The advantage would be short lived as the Griffins (21-9, 13-4 CACC) scored four runs of their own in the fifth to reclaim the lead, 6-4. Robert Slagle and Michael McLaughlin hit back-to-back RBI singles to even the score. Patrick Kelley put Chestnut Hill back in fron with a two-out, two-run single to left field.

Chestnut Hill pushed the margin to 9-4 with Taylor Steen RBI single in the seventh and a two-run Campion homer in the eighth.

The Rams answered in the home half of the eighth with a two-out triple to right center field by McTaggart to score Steven Wells (Yardley, Pa./The Hun School) and Garza to close the gap to 9-6.

In the ninth, Chestnut Hill scored three two-out runs, two on an Alec Craig single, to take a game-high six run lead, 12-6.

Philadelphia didn't go down without a fight in its last at-bat. The last of the ninth opened with a single by Hunter Greenwood (Salisbury, Md./James M. Bennett) and a RBI double from Ken McCormick (Yardley, Pa./Pennsbury). After a pair of outs, Wells and Drummond both walked on four straight pitches to load the bases. Garza roped a line drive into left to plate McCormick and bring the trying run to the plate.

Chestnut Hill brought closer Vincent Manzella into the game, and he got McTaggart to strike out to end the Rams' two-out rally.

The Griffins, led by three hits from McLaughlin, outhit the Rams 14-10. The teams combined for 10 extra base hits—six by the Griffins, four by the Rams.

Raia struck out eight over six innings, while allowed four runs—one earned—on four hits to collect the win.

Philadelphia heads to Caldwell for a CACC doubleheader on Saturday, April 18 at noon.