Box Score NASHVILLE, Tenn.- Behind strong pitching from freshman RHP Dylan King (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) and a nice day for the Bruin hitters, the Belmont University baseball team (29-23, 15-12) picked up a much needed, 7-1 victory over Tennessee Tech (27-22, 14-13) Sunday afternoon at E.S. Rose Park.
Belmont improves to 15-12 in OVC play while Tech falls to 14-13 in what will be an exciting race to the finish for the top six spots to qualify for the conference tournament in Jackson.
Building off two very strong performances in his last two outings, King was terrific in game three of the series as he registered seven innings, allowing just five hits and conceding just one run. The freshman set career highs in innings (7) and strikeouts (7).
"Today I was able to execute all three of my pitches and keep them down in the zone. At times this year, the fast ball was all that I had working, but today all three of my pitches were clicking," said King after the victory. "I didn't try to do too much out there, all I was worried about was executing my pitches."
In what was set to be a battle between two freshman pitchers, it was Belmont's King who reigned supreme in the matchup. TTU's rookie hurler Nick Osborne recorded just two outs in his brief stint while King twirled the best outing of his young career.
Hunter Holland (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.) and Clay Payne (Powell, Tenn.) provided a potent, 1-2 punch for Belmont as the duo combined for five of the team's seven runs driven in. Payne helped the Bruins set the tone early in the contest with his two-RBI double in the first inning before Holland added to the BU cushion with a solo homer in the third. Brennan Washington (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) added a double and two RBI in the series finale.
"We came into the game knowing that we needed a win today to keep pace in the conference standings," remarked Holland after the win. "We didn't look back at the past two games, we put them behind us and focused on doing our best today. We had fun and didn't stress out too much and came through in the end with a big win."
Holland now has five homeruns and 11 runs batted in in his last eight games, and is batting .406 during that span.
"My philosophy is unless there are two strikes, you might as well swing hard," added Holland. "Lately I've been finding the right pitches to put the bat on and it's working out."
Chas Hadden (Morristown, Tenn.), known for his keen eye at the plate, drew three walks, added a hit and scored three times while teammate Kyle Conger (Brentwood, Tenn.) registered a pair of singles and a walk to set the table at the top of the Bruin order.
Belmont got off to the strong start it needed as three of the first four batters reached in bottom of the first inning. The Bruins opened with a three-run first inning highlighted by Payne's team-high 20th double of the season. With two runners aboard, Payne smacked one down the left field line to make it 3-0 Bruins after Holland had plated a run with a sacrifice fly.
Holland added to the Bruin advantage with a solo homer in the bottom of the third as he picked up his second homerun of the series and his seventh on the season.
Tech picked up its third hit of the ball game with a leadoff knock in the top of the sixth. King then worked out of a crucial jam in the frame as he left a runner stranded at first base. With TTU's three-hole hitter Strohschein at the dish, King won the battle as he struck out the fellow freshman with a 3-2 fastball before getting the Golden Eagles' cleanup hitter to pop out.
Scoring for the first time since the third inning, Belmont added an insurance run in the seventh as Holland drove in Hadden with an infield single off the pitcher's glove.
"We knew coming into the weekend that this was a big series, so we might have pressed a little the first two games, but today we reminded ourselves to not to try to do too much," said Holland. "We knew we could hit the ball here (at Rose Park), it's just a matter of execution."
Washington provided even more stability for Belmont when he smoked a double into the right center gap, pushing across Conger and Hadden in the bottom of the eighth.
After some early season struggles, King has shaped into a reliable weekend starter for Belmont as he has now put together a string of three-straight strong outings.
"Early in the season I wasn't as aggressive as I needed to be, but now I'm more confident out there and am having fun. I'm just going out and executing the way I know I can," added King.
Connor Etheridge (Springfield, Ill.) compiled two innings of scoreless relief as he took the mound for innings eight and nine.
With Alex Ward's (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) stolen base in the third inning, the Bruins reached 100 steals as a team.
After the conclusion of the series, the Bruins have 69 homers just one shy of the program record.
Belmont has just four games remaining as it welcomes Middle Tennessee to Rose Park Tuesday before concluding its season at SEMO.
