INDIANOLA, Iowa – In the bottom of the ninth inning, Des Moines had the game-winning run (Colin Evers) on third with one out.

Carroll managed to tag him out on a 5-2 ground-ball fielder’s choice, which eventually sent a pivotal division game into extras at McBride Field.

The Peak Prospects (7-5) went three-up, three-down in the 10th, 11th, and 12th innings before loading the bases with no outs.

With Austin Noel on the mound for Carroll, freshman catcher Liam Gilbert, who had pinch-hit in the 11th, came up to the plate and delieverd a high fly ball to deep left field to score Cade Grevengoed (FR, Northeast CC [NE]) home from third.

“[Noel] threw that 3-1 pitch in the dirt,” Gilbert said. “I’m like, ‘it’s either gonna be my pitch, or it’s gonna be ball four.’ And sure enough, he threw my pitch.”

Gilbert recently played in the junior-college world series with East Central Community College in Decatur, Mississippi and is a Meridian native. In three games with Des Moines, he is hitting 6-9.

It’s just the second loss of the season for the Merchants (8-2), who had beaten the Peak Prospects in the MINK League’s standalone opener 17-8 less than two weeks ago.

Left fielder Joe Scarborough drove in a two-run home run in the top of the first to put Carroll up 2-0.

In the third, Prospects’ first baseman Noah Cook (R-JR, Southern Illinois) gave Des Moines its first run on an RBI double (Alex Berreth from NIACC scored).

Cook then added a two-RBI single in the fifth to score Isaac Short (FR, Northwestern College [IA]) and Bubba Thompson (JR, Clarke University). Designated hitter Declan O’Hare (R-JR, Central College) added a sac-fly RBI to send Berreth home, and Des Moines led 4-2 after five.

In the very next frame, Carroll tied the game 4-4 on a Chris Hege two-RBI single, and no one scored until the walkoff.

Freshman lefty Kyle Snyder (Highland CC [KS]) entered the game in the top of ninth and pitched five innings, striking out six batters and notching the win.

Des Moines loaded the bases in the bottom of the 13th when Grevengoed reached on an error by the third-baseman, Tanner Short (FR, Ellsworth CC) reached on a bunt single, and Diego Morales (Fr, Bryant & Stratton [VA]) walked.

“Walking up, I knew [Noel’s] fastball was probably his best pitch,” Gilbert said. “And he threw it hard, and it was effective – he was striking people out.”

Morales played in right field and had two fantastic plays late in the game – a sliding catch on a two-out liner with a runner on third, and a foul-out catch followed by a cannon of a throw to help tag out the runner at second. The plays ended the top of the eighth and 10th innings, respectively.

Des Moines and Carroll will play a rematch Saturday, this time at Merchants Park, at 4 p.m. CT.