Bruins top Panthers in mid-week tilt

OMAHA, Neb. -- Derik Bontempo and Todd Nicks hit back-to-back home runs the sixth inning to back a strong effort on the hill from Reid Feeley as the No. 8 Bellevue University baseball team defeated York College by a score of 8-3 on Tuesday afternoon in non-conference action at Westgate Field.

Bellevue improves to 24-6 on the year with their 17^th-straight victory victory while York drops to 19-16 with their fifth loss in their last six ballgames.

BU wasted no time getting on the scoreboard early. Following a two-out Bontempo double, Nicks followed up with a single through the left side to chase in Bontempo from third after he advanced to third on a passed ball.

Nicks extended his hitting streak to 11 games with his first inning single and now has a .528 average,  10 extra-base hits (4 doubles, 2 home runs), and 25 RBI during his streak.

The Bruins tacked on a couple more runs in the second when Jake Browne drove in Alec Chaney on a sac fly and Diego Iribarren came home on a passed ball for a 3-0 Bruin advantage.

Browne recorded his second RBI of the game with a two-out single up the middle to score Lumus Russell following a double down the right field line.

That's where the score stayed until the sixth inning when Bontempo went oppo with a three-run home run to right. One batter later, Nicks got into a ball and launched a no-doubter over the scoreboard in left field.

Feeley ran into a little trouble in the eighth as York struck for three runs as the strike zone became elusive for the junior right-hander. Billy Johnson drew a bases loaded walk to chase in a run, while Connor Towle delivered a sac fly to center, and Nick Carney singled in the final run through the left side of the infield.

Feeley (W, 4-0), making his first start since his 14-strikeout performance against Northwestern back on March 17, turned in 7.1 solid innings. He shut out the Panthers through seven before tiring in the eighth. His final line showed him allowing three runs on six hits while striking out seven and walking two.

Anthony Contonio worked around a pair of hits and recorded the final five outs for the Bruins.

Jaraad Salas (L, 0-2) took the loss for York. He was chased after allowing four runs (two earned) on six hits and three walks in just 3.2 innings on the bump.

Bellevue returns home this weekend when they host Presentation College for a four-game NSAA series. Saturday's games are scheduled for 1 p.m. at Westgate Field with Sunday's action slated for a noon start at Roddy Field.