WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (Feb. 24, 2017)—The William & Mary baseball team opened its three-game series against Lafayette with a 5-4, extra-inning victory in its home opener at Plumeri Park on Friday afternoon.
 
After junior Cullen Large doubled in the tying run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, freshman Michael Goldak provided more late-game heroics with a two-out walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the 10th.
 
Large finished the afternoon 4-for-5 at the plate, while Goldak went 2-for-5. Junior Ryan Hall also came up big at the plate, going 2-for-5 with a home run and two runs scored.
 
Junior Robert White (1-0) earned the victory in relief after working a scoreless 10th inning, while Lafayette's Mark Anderson (0-1) suffered the loss.
 
Tribe starter Nick Brown did not earn a decision, but was excellent after allowing a two-run home run in the first inning and went 6.0 innings with three earned runs and six strikeouts. Junior Charlie Fletcher, senior Aaron Fernandez, freshman Wade Strain and White were tremendous out of the bullpen and combined to pitch 4.0 innings without allowing an earned run.
 
Although Lafayette (1-3) got on the scoreboard first with a two-run homer by Dan Leckie in the top of the first, W&M answered with a run in the bottom half of the frame when Hall scored on a single by Large that was misplayed by the Leopards' right fielder.
 
The teams traded runs again in the sixth and seventh innings, as Hall homered over the left field scoreboard in the sixth and freshman Patrick Ryan delivered an RBI pinch hit single in the seventh.
 
W&M looked as if it might break through with big innings in both the seventh and eighth frames but left the bases loaded on both occasions.
 
The Tribe knotted the game in the ninth after freshman Brandon Raquet delivered a one-out single to right, and Large followed with a two-out RBI double to deep right field.
 
Senior Ryder Miconi drew a leadoff walk in the bottom of the 10th before sophomore Owen Socher came on to pinch run. Although the next two Tribe hitters failed to reach base, Goldak plated the winning run with a single to left.
 
The teams will continue the series on Saturday with the first pitch scheduled for 10 a.m.