Morehouse Rallies To Stun Benedict in SIAC Baseball Tournament

MACON, Ga. — Down 10-4 after four innings on Sunday night at Luther Williams Field, the Morehouse Maroon Tigers had every reason to start packing for a bus ride back to Atlanta. Instead, the Maroon Tigers stayed in the dugout, sent eight men to the plate the next inning, rallied, and walked out of the 2026 SIAC Baseball Tournament with their season still breathing after defeating Benedict, 15-11, per AD Drew of Morehouse Athletics.

No. 5 Morehouse (25-20) erupted for an eight-run fifth and held No. 6 Benedict (23-13) hitless over the final five frames to pull off a 15-11 elimination-bracket win in the fourth round of the 2026 SIAC Baseball Tournament. The victory sends 2025-26 SIAC Coach of the Year and head coach Antonio Grissom and the Maroon Tigers — picked eighth in the SIAC preseason poll — into the semifinal bracket against top-seeded Spring Hill on Monday afternoon at 1 PM ET.

Grissom has built this team to swing back. Sunday night, his guys swung back and earned the right to play on in Macon.

How It Happened

Benedict opened the scoring in the second when Joshua Medina dropped a solo shot into right field. Morehouse answered in the bottom half. Elijah James drew a walk, Cam Simmons took one off the body, a sacrifice bunt moved both into scoring position, and James scampered home on a wild pitch. Robert Robinson Jr. then turned on a pitch and drove it over the left-field fence for a two-run homer that put Morehouse in front 3-1.

The third inning belonged entirely to Benedict. The Tigers strung together seven runs on a Morehouse error, a passed ball, an RBI single, a bases-loaded hit batter and back-to-back run-scoring walks. Cameron Haley added a two-run shot in the fourth, and Benedict’s lead ballooned to 10-3.

Myles Tucker pulled one back in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI double that scored Elijah Pinckney, but Morehouse still trailed by six heading to the fifth.

Then the game turned

Mariano McLean walked. James singled. Simmons walked to load the bases. Chase Williams brought in a run with a groundout. Benedict elected to put Robinson Jr. on intentionally to reload the bases — the first of three intentional walks the Maroon Tigers’ cleanup hitter would draw on the night — and Pinckney made the Tigers pay with a two-run single to right-center. Tucker followed with an RBI double. TJ Whiteman pushed home another run with a sacrifice fly. Tripp Braswell tripled to left to score Tucker. McLean capped the inning with a two-run homer down the right-field line.

Eight runs. Five hits. One ballgame, completely flipped. Morehouse led 12-10.

The Bullpen Saved the Comeback

Vernon Clay made it possible. The right-hander entered in the fifth on one day of rest with Benedict in command and the Maroon Tigers’ season teetering, and he delivered three hitless innings with three strikeouts. The lone run charged to Clay came after he exited in the eighth, but his work across the fifth, sixth and seventh innings gave the offense the runway it needed.

Braswell finished the job. The freshman — just named SIAC Freshman of the Year — had already earned the win in Morehouse’s earlier elimination-bracket game. He came back out and recorded the final six outs against Benedict. Two innings. No hits. One strikeout. One save. One season still alive.

Benedict pushed across a single run in the eighth, but Morehouse responded with three insurance runs of its own.

Simmons walked. Robinson Jr. drew his third intentional walk of the night. Kendyn Fredieu walked to load the bases. A passed ball brought in Simmons, and Whiteman lined a single to left-center to plate Fredieu and Robinson Jr. for the final 15-11 margin.

By the Numbers

Morehouse outhit Benedict 11-6. The Maroon Tigers piled up five extra-base hits — two doubles, a triple and two home runs. Benedict drew 15 walks and stranded 14 runners. Morehouse drew 14 walks and stranded 11. The difference was the big inning, and it was the bullpen.

Maroon Tigers Leaders

Tucker turned in the cleanest line of the night, going 3-for-3 with two doubles, two RBIs, two walks and a run scored. McLean went 2-for-3 with a home run, two RBIs, two walks and two runs scored. Robinson Jr. finished 1-for-3 with a homer, two RBIs, three runs and three intentional walks. Whiteman drove in three runs on a single, a sacrifice fly and a sacrifice bunt. Pinckney, the senior captain and Elite 16 Award recipient, added two RBIs and two runs. James reached three times. Simmons scored three runs.

Braswell’s stat line covered both the lineup card and the box score: 1-for-5 with a triple and an RBI at the plate, two hitless innings on the mound and the save.

Up Next

Morehouse advances to face No. 1 Spring Hill in the elimination bracket final, which doubles as the SIAC Tournament semifinal. First pitch is set for 1 p.m. ET on Monday at Luther Williams Field. The game will stream on the SIAC Network. The Maroon Tigers must beat the Badgers twice to reach the championship round.

ABOUT THE MOREHOUSE VICTORY

Who won the Morehouse vs. Benedict baseball game in the 2026 SIAC Tournament?

Morehouse defeated Benedict 15-11 in the fourth round of the 2026 SIAC Baseball Tournament on Sunday at Luther Williams Field in Macon, Georgia.

How did Morehouse come back against Benedict?

Morehouse trailed 10-4 after four innings before scoring eight runs in the bottom of the fifth and holding Benedict hitless over the final five innings to win 15-11.

Who is Morehouse playing next in the SIAC Tournament?

Morehouse plays No. 1 Spring Hill on Monday at 1 p.m. ET at Luther Williams Field in the elimination bracket final, which serves as the SIAC Tournament semifinal.

Who is the Morehouse baseball head coach?

Antonio Grissom is the Morehouse baseball head coach and was named the 2026 SIAC Coach of the Year after leading the Maroon Tigers from a preseason eighth-place projection into the upper tier of the conference.

Who pitched for Morehouse in the win over Benedict?

Vernon Clay earned the win in relief with three hitless innings on one day of rest. Freshman Tripp Braswell, the 2026 SIAC Freshman of the Year, recorded the save with two hitless innings to close it out.