EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Ninth inning offensive magic pushed Belmont past Evansville, 11-7 Wednesday night at Braun Stadium.
After loading the bases in the first, Belmont took a 2-0 lead. Jamie Ritchie reached on a fielder's choice and an error by UE allowed Alec Diamond and Drew Ferguson to cross the plate.
Behind an RBI single from Matt Beaty and a UE error, Ferguson crossed the plate. A sacrifice fly from Ritchie drove in Beaty to give the Bruins a 4-0 lead. Evansville loaded the bases in the bottom half of the inning, but Patrick McGrath pitched out of the jam, leaving the runners stranded.
Evansville cut the Bruins lead in half in the fourth after a pair of defensive miscues. Behind a three-run triple from Kevin Kaczmarski and an RBI groundout in the fifth, the Purple Aces took a 6-4 lead.
Belmont threatened in the eighth after Ritchie singled and Egli drew a walk. Both advanced on a wild pitch, but the runners were left stranded.
In the ninth, the Bruins manufactured some late inning magic and scored seven runs to regain the lead. Diamond's RBI single drove in Matthew Kinney and sparked the late inning rally. Tyler Walsh scored the tying run for the Bruins off a single from Ferguson. Diamond and Ferguson crossed the plate behind an RBI single from Beaty and a UE error, giving Belmont an 8-6 lead. Kinney capped the inning with a bases clearing double to put Belmont ahead 11-6.
Evansville was able to score an unearned run in the bottom of the ninth, but it was not enough as the Bruins preserved their second-straight win.
The Bruins will travel to Murray State this weekend, for the team's final road trip of the regular season. The series begins on Friday at 3:00pm.
