Box Score NASHVILLE, Tenn.- The Belmont University baseball team came away with a walk off victory Friday evening, as it knocked off the visiting Youngstown State Penguins, 4-3 in the bottom of the 12th inning.
Senior catcher Desi Ammons (Hohenhald, Tenn.) drove in Kyle Conger (Brentwood, Tenn.) with a sacrifice fly to tally the game-winning run in the bottom of the 12th to propel the Bruins to victory.
"It feels good. We had some opportunities early in the game, but it was really great to help my team earn the win. We were in it all game, there were times where we easily could have collapsed but we didn't. We stayed the course and grinded it out," said the senior Ammons after the victory.
Belmont's pitching was its calling card Friday night. Tyler Vaughn (Jonesboro, Ill.) picked up the victory as he logged 4.2 innings and racked up nine strikeouts in relief. Starter Aaron Quillen (Kingsport, Tenn.) was terrific as he finished with seven innings pitched, zero earned runs and eight strikeouts.
"It showed a lot of fortitude by our kids, that was of course demonstrated by Tyler Vaughn and Aaron Quillen who both pitched great for us tonight. I'm so happy for Desi that was a very clutch at bat for him, I'm definitly proud of him tonight," added Head Coach Dave Jarvis after the victory.
Ammons scored the game's first run in the fifth and drove in the final one in the 12th.
Quillen who from the get go was in control on the mound, now has 25 strikeouts through three starts.
"Coach preached all week to get ahead and trust myself. I really believed in my defense and tried to get ahead early. At the beginning of the game it kind of felt like I was still out there from last Friday," said Quillen. "I felt really comfortable out there, I knew that if I just kept throwing strikes that our defense would make plays."
Belmont scored two runs in the fifth and one in the seventh to carry the lead into the eighth.
Quillen cruised through seven innings of work before giving way to Connor Etheridge (Springfield, Ill.). In the top of the eighth Etheridge ran in to some hard luck and allowed the first three runners to reach base. Vaughn then entered the game for the five out save.
Vaughn faced a tough challenge as he entered the game with the bases loaded and no one out. Youngstown State's Andrew Kendrick greeted Vaughn with a base hit up the middle to plate the first run of the game for the Penguins. Vaughn then hit the next batter and the score stood 3-2. Youngstown's Dominic Brown next hit a nubber to the shortstop which resulted in a run to even the score at 3-3. Vaughn struck out the next batter to end the threat. After seven innings the game was all the sudden knotted at three all.
"It was a great win for our team. I came in a tough situation. Honestly I didn't really do my job but I found a way to get around it and I kept competing out there," said Vaughn after the hardfought win.
After both teams went scoreless for their next respective turns at the dish, Belmont had a chance to win it the ninth but Tyler Walsh (Evansville, Ind.) was left stranded on third.
After entering the game in the eighth, Vaughn remained in for the duration as he pitched very effectively out of the Bruin pen. Vaughn registered a gritty performance as himself and Quillen combined for 17 strikeouts.
"Those guys (Quillen and Vaughn) really throw a lot of strikes and pitch down in the zone. That's the biggest thing. They also believe in their off speed. They were really dialed in tonight," said the catcher Ammons.
In extras, the Bruins had chances in the 10th to win it and Youngstown State the 11th, but ultimately it was the host Bruins breaking through in the 12th. It was a bit of redemption for Ammons who came up in the 10th inning with the same situation, bases loaded one out. In the 12th though, it was a different story, as Ammons sent the Bruins home celebrating.
The Bruins opened the scoring in the fifth when Ammons led off the frame with a double into the right center gap. Chas Hadden (Morristown, Tenn.), starting at DH in the five hole, came through with a single to extend the rally. Ammons scored BU's first run of the game in a rather unconventional fashion as he was credited with stealing home after Hadden was picked off from first but managed to get in a run down to help push across the run. Hunter Holland (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.) later tripled to score Hadden and give his club the 2-0 lead.
Neither team scored again until the seventh, as Quillen and YSU starter Joey King both settled in nicely on the bump. Ben Kocher (Zionsville, Ind.) drove in BU's third run in the bottom of the seventh on a sac fly.
The Bruins, after dropping a pair of midweek contests, are back in the win column thanks to a very strong start from their ace Quillen.
"I love it, I've wanted to throw Friday nights for a long time. It's just fun, it's fun to compete out here," added Quillen.
The Bruins resume the their series with Youngstown State, tomorrow at 1 p.m. at Rose Park.
"It was a huge win for us. Hopefully we keep it rolling tomorrow and work towards a series win. It's all about taking it one game at a time," added Vaughn.
