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Jordan Zuger_WIU Saturday recap
Tyra Finkeldey
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Winner Western Illinois WIU 3-11
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Belmont BEL 6-10
Winner
Western Illinois WIU
3-11
6
Final
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Belmont BEL
6-10
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Western Illinois WIU 1 0 0 3 1 0 0 0 1 6 15 1
Belmont BEL 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 3 5 10 0

W: Tyler Kapraun (1-2) L: Zuger, Jordan (1-3) S: Jack Bell (2)

Game Recap: Baseball |

Baseball's Ninth Inning Rally Falls Short in 6-5 Defeat to Western Illinois

Bruins Score Three in Final Frame but Come Up Just Shy, Will Finish Series on Sunday

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- A furious ninth inning comeback attempt fell just short for the Belmont University baseball team on Saturday as they fell, 6-5, to Western Illinois at E.S. Rose Park. 

Trailing 6-2 heading into the final frame, Belmont (6-10) rattled off three runs to pull within one, but ran out of steam in the tight loss. 

Sam Kirkpatrick hit a home run to left field in the ninth to get Belmont to within 6-3. Max Blessinger doubled, then Mason Landers tripled to right-center field to bring Belmont within two runs at 6-4. 

Blake Barton picked up a sacrifice fly with a ball hit to center field that scored Landers, emptying the bases with two outs and getting Belmont even closer at 6-5. 

However, for the second night in a row, Western Illinois closer Jack Bell (SV, 2) shut the door to secure the Leatherneck victory. 

Combined with the tight loss on Friday, the defeat marks just the second time in the last eight series that Belmont has lost a home series at E.S. Rose Park. 

Ethan Harden collected his first career multi-RBI game, hitting a solo home run, his first career home run, to lead off the third inning and driving in another run with a grounder in the fourth inning that scored Brodey Heaton. 

Simon Tesh tossed three innings while allowing just one run with a strikeout, and Caleb Guisewite threw the final two frames and allowed just one run in relief. 

Western Illinois (3-11) tallied 15 hits on the day, tied for the most by a Belmont opponent this season. The Bruins were able to limit the Leathernecks to just six runs thanks in part to a season-high four double plays. 

Up Next 

Belmont will try to salvage the series with a win when they return to E.S. Rose Park on Sunday afternoon to close out the weekend against Western Illinois. 

First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. The game will be streamed on ESPN+, and live stats will be available on BelmontBruins.com 

Follow Belmont baseball on social media - @BelmontBaseball on Twitter and @belmontbaseball on Instagram - for complete coverage of the Bruins. Stay up to date with all of Belmont's athletic programs via the official app of the Belmont Bruins, available both in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.                   

#ItsBruinTime 

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