Baseball Takes 12-Inning Thriller, 5-3, Over Bradley on Friday Night

PEORIA, Ill. – Behind electric pitching and outstanding defense, the Belmont University baseball team emerged victorious over Bradley in a 12-inning marathon on Friday night, 5-3, at Dozer Park in Peoria, Illinois.
 
The win marks the fourth Missouri Valley Conference victory in a row for Belmont (25-30, 10-16 MVC) as they surge towards the end of the regular season.
 
At the end of three innings, Bradley and Belmont remained tied at 3-3. From that point forward, Bruin pitchers allowed just two hits and no runs over the final nine innings to carry Belmont to a thrilling win.
 
Ethan Harden (W, 4-2) earned the win with three scoreless innings in which he allowed just one baserunner. Simon Tesh (SV, 1) picked up his first career save by retiring the Bradley side in order in the twelfth inning.
 
On the evening, Harden recorded two hits offensively at the plate while also getting credit as the winning pitcher with a three-inning shutdown performance on the mound with three strikeouts.

??? Hear from Ethan Harden after he went 2-for-5 at the plate while tossing three scoreless innings for his fourth win of the year on the mound ??@ethanzharden | #ItsBruinTime pic.twitter.com/IYTPaSSoUp
— Belmont Baseball (@BelmontBaseball) May 20, 2023
 

Andy Bean tossed a scoreless inning in relief and Will Pryor provided four scoreless frames from the bullpen, striking out three Braves along the way.
 
With Belmont's relief pitchers holding serve, in the top of the twelfth, Belmont finally broke through offensively, loading the bases with nobody out.
 
Cade Rogers, into the game at first base to replace an injured Brodey Heaton, drove a ball deep into right field to allow Harden to tag and score the go-ahead run, making it 4-3 in favor of Belmont. It marked Rogers' second RBI of the season and proved to be the game-winner.
 
Sam Slaughter added an RBI with a grounder that scored Jeff Clarke, giving Simon Tesh a two-run lead to work with in the bottom of the twelfth.
 
Mason Landers finished 2-for-5 at the plate with a double and a run scored, and had a career-night defensively, making tremendous plays at third base and even tumbling over the side railing in foul territory while making a highlight-reel catch.

OVER THE RAIL GOES @butter_landers1 ??#SCTop10 | @ESPNAssignDesk pic.twitter.com/FeGp9Jd5vt

— Belmont Baseball (@BelmontBaseball) May 20, 2023

Jack Rando and Sam Slaughter also shined defensively, helping keep men off base and allowing the Bruin pitchers to work in a rhythm.

Sam Slaughter got that dawg in him ??#SCTop10 | @ESPNAssignDesk pic.twitter.com/MBlvezPWry

— Belmont Baseball (@BelmontBaseball) May 20, 2023

Brodey Heaton finished 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI.
 
Up Next
 
Belmont will go for a sweep of Bradley in the regular season finale on Saturday afternoon at Dozer Park in Peoria.
 
A Belmont win or a Valparaiso loss would cement the Bruins as the No. 7 seed in next week's MVC Championship. Any other result would secure Belmont as the No. 8 seed in the tournament.
 
First pitch on Saturday is scheduled for 2 p.m.
 
The game will be streamed on ESPN3, with live audio play-by-play broadcast on Belmont Bruins Radio on iHeartRadio and live stats 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.