Box Score JACKSON, Tenn.- Playing into the early hours of the morning at the Ballpark at Jackson, the No. 6 Belmont University baseball team fell in the first round of OVC Tournament action, 12-7 to No. 3 Austin Peay Thursday at the Ballpark in Jackson.
In a déjà vu of sorts, Belmont again saw its game one game time pushed back due to rain in a near identical circumstance to last season's opening round matchup in the tournament. The Bruins and Governors took the field for a 10:05 first pitch after the day's first game between Morehead State and Tennessee Tech was delayed for several hours due to inclement weather.
The squads went toe to toe for the first half of the game, but Austin Peay flexed its muscles in the latter stages of the contest to walk away with a first round victory. Belmont made it interesting with a five run top of the eighth, but the rally came up short. The Bruins were outhit 18-8
BU will square off with Tennessee Tech tomorrow at 11 a.m. as it faces elimination in the conference tournament.
Senior RHP Aaron Quillen (Kingsport, Tenn.) grinded his way through four innings, pitching in and out of trouble, and suffered the loss despite allowing just two earned runs. The final line on Quillen read four innings pitched, four runs (two earned), nine hits and five strikeouts. After outdueling Austin Peay's Alex Robles on April 15 in Nashville, it was Robles would had the upper hand in round two.
Kyle Conger (Brentwood, Tenn.), Chas Hadden (Morristown, Tenn.), Tyler Fullerton (Murfreesboro, Tenn.), Tyler Walsh (Evansville, Ind.) and Ben Kocher (Zionsville, Ind.) all recorded RBIs in the rain-soaked setback.
Kocher and Conger each scored a pair of runs.
The Govs struck first in the bottom of the second when Dre Gleason singled to left to drive in Ridge Smith who had reached on a triple in the frame. Gleason would come around to score the second run of the inning after Alex Sala shot one down the third base line, narrowly fair for the a double. After two innings were expired, Belmont faced a 2-0 deficit.
Belmont responded though with a tally in the top of the third when Fullerton stroked a basehit to score Kocher. Fullerton excelled on the defensive end in the bottom of the inning, making a tremendous throw to gun an Austin Peay runner out at second base.
After Conger singled and stole second, Hadden came through with a base knock to plate Conger to knot things up at two all in the fifth.
What began as a back-and-forth battle continued as Austin Peay got things going again in the bottom of the fifth. To start the inning the Governors reached on an error and hit by pitch. The miscues proved costly as the next two Govs to bat would record hits to put them ahead 4-2. Into the game out of the bullpen came Kyle Klotz (Brentwood, Tenn.) and he was thrust into a first and third situation without an out in the books. After retiring the first batter he saw, Klotz coaxed a double play ball to end the threat and keep the count at just 4-2.
The bottom of the sixth is when Belmont really ran into trouble. Klotz began the sixth inning, but lasted just two batters in the frame as he was one of three BU hurlers to toe the slab in the stanza. Connor Etheridge (Springfield, Ill.) relieved Klotz, but saw the first four batters he saw record hits before recording his first out. Zach Hodgkiss (Eads, Tenn.) entered and faced two batters, retiring one. All told, the Governors would strike for six runs in the inning, and what was a two run deficit, stood at eight after six innings were in the books. What was anyone's ball game, suddenly shifted in the Govs favor.
Trailing 10-2 heading into the top of the eighth, the Bruins struck for five runs in the frame to decrease the deficit to just three. The Governors came back for a two-run home half of the stanza to carry a five run advantage into the ninth.
The Bruins put a runner on but were held scoreless in the ninth, falling for the third time this season to Austin Peay.
Josh Tubbs (Camden, Tenn.) threw the eighth inning for Belmont after Hodgkiss took care of the seventh.
Hunter Holland (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.) added a basehit and a stolen base.
Just a few hours after the conclusion of their first game of the tournament, Belmont faces a quick turnaround with a 11 a.m. matchup with Tennessee Tech.
