SCRANTON, Pa. -- Down by as many as five runs and trailing 12-8 entering the ninth, the cardiac Diplomats came all the way back to grab a 13-12 victory over Scranton in 10 innings during a non-conference matchup between regionally ranked opponents on Tuesday evening. Franklin & Marshall (25-14) pulled together their second come-from-behind victory in as many games in the win over the Royals (28-10-1).

The sixth-ranked Diplomats helped bolster their chances for an at-large selection in the NCAA Championship, taking down the fourth-ranked team in Region V for a second time this season. F&M now sports a 2-1 record against teams ahead of them in the region.

Spencer Berson got the Diplomats on the board in the first, homering down the left field line for a 1-0 lead.

The Royals snagged the lead on the back of an RBI double and three-run homer in the first, then a pair of RBI singles in the second for a 6-1 lead.

F&M tied the game with a five-spot in the third, loading the bases with just one away. Will Samuel was plunked to force in a run, then AJ Desautels plated two more with an RBI double. A Patrick Cettina groundout to short scored another, followed by Michael Cole's RBI single to knot the game at six.

Scranton retook the lead across the next two innings, plating four to grab a 10-6 advantage.

Jakob Hoffman cut the Royals lead in half in the sixth with an RBI double to left, but Scranton recovered with a bases loaded walk in the bottom of the frame, followed by an unearned run in the eighth for a 12-8 lead entering the final inning.

Things looked bleak for F&M, but on this night under the lights in Scranton with everything still left to play for, the Diplomats refused to be denied.

Patrick Cettina landed on first after getting plunked, followed by a Conner Rush single, then Pat Elliott reaching on an error. Tommy Denlinger trimmed the deficit to two on a double down the right field line, and Spencer Berson continued the rally with a return-to-sender single back up the middle to tie the game at 12-12.

After the Royals led off the bottom of the ninth with a leadoff single, Thomas McLaughlin and Conner Rush paired for a strike-em-out, throw-em-out double play to put two outs on the board. McLaughlin got the final out on strikes to send the game into extras.

With two down in the 10th, Connor Rush singled through the left side, then advanced to second on a wild pitch. Pat Elliott beat out a slow chopper to third, pushing Rush just 90 feet away. Tommy Denlinger answered the call again with an RBI single up the gut for the 13-12 lead.

Dan Galef gave up a leadoff single, but got the final three Royals on strikes to secure the victory.

The Diplomats used 14 different field players and eight separate pitchers in the win.

Tommy Denlinger, Spencer Berson, and Michael Cole all finished with three hits, with Denlinger and Berson each contributing a trio of RBI and runs. Jakob Hoffman and AJ Desautels both had a pair of RBI, while Conner Rush finished 2-2 with two runs off the bench.

Thomas McLaughlin (4-1) earned the win, pitching the eighth and ninth allowing just one hit and an unearned run while striking out three. Dan Galef picked up his second save of the year with three strikeouts in the tenth.

F&M continues to look to bolster its chances for postseason glory, with the potential for more games to be added in the near future.