Bruins win opener, drop series at USAO

CHICKASHA, Okla. -- Brandon Desjardins started the No. 23 Bellevue University baseball season off on the right foot with a strong pitching performance in the Bruins' season-opening win but three-straight losses at the hands of No. 11 University Science & Arts saw BU drop their first series of the season at Bill Smith Ballpark.

Records:

#23 Bellevue: 1-3
#11 USAO: 10-1

Game 1: BU 5, USAO 1

Brandon Desjardins (W, 1-0) fired six innings of two-hit ball and limited a potent USAO offense to just one run.

JT Patterson came on for the seventh and shut down the Drovers.

Bellevue scored four runs in the seventh inning to turn a tie ball game into a 5-1 advantage headed into the home half.

Matt Merrill picked up a no-decision after six innings of one-run ball and holding BU to just a pair of hits and striking out six.

Edgar Cuevas (L, 0-1) was saddled with the loss after surrendering four runs (two earned) on a hit, a pair of walks, a hit-batter, and a couple USAO defensive miscues.

Game 2: USAO 7, BU 1

The Drovers scored a run in the opening frame and added two runs each in the second, fourth, and sixth innings to take the victory.

Kory Longaker provided the lone RBI for the Bruins who scratched out a consolation run in the seventh.

Riley Baasch, Stuart Eurich, Travis Tanaka, Tommy Hansen, and Cody Banks accounted for BU's five hits in the game.

Anthony Alvarado (L, 0-1) worked three innings in his first start for the Bruins and Colton Walker came on for three innings of relief.

Jean Mutaner (W, 1-0) allowed a run on five hits and struck out five over six innings to pick up the win.

Game 3: USAO 8, BU 3

USAO used a seven-run third inning to seize control of the game, 8-0.

Bellevue threatened late, scoring a pair of runs and loading the bases with just one out in the sixth, but left the bags loaded and were unable to trim the deficit further.

Wataru Kazama and JT Patterson each went 2-for-3 in the game.

Stephen Knapp (L, 0-1) took the loss after being tagged for eight runs on seven hits in 2.1 innings of work.

Jarrett Poh and Andrew Churchill combined to work 3.2 scoreless innings of relief in which each allowed just a single hit.

Ricardo Velez (W, 1-0) earned the win with 5.1 effective innings for the Drovers in which he held BU to three runs, two earned, on seven hits and struck out nine. Rudy Gonzalez (SV, 1) picked up the save in relief, striking out four of the six batters he faced, and working out of a bases loaded jam in the sixth.

Game Four: USAO 10, BU 2

Bellevue got on the board first with a two-run first inning thanks to an RBI-single from JT Patterson and a sac fly off the bat of Riley Baasch.

The Drovers erased that deficit with a three-run third inning before tacking on an additional run in the fourth.

A four-spot in the fifth inning put the home side in control, 8-2. USAO tacked on two more runs in the sixth to account for the final margin.

Mitch Savine (L, 0-1) was charged with allowing five runs on eight hits in 4-plus innings of work.

Rudy Gonzalez (W, 1-0) earned the win with the complete game. He allowed two runs on six hits and struck out four.

Up Next:

Bellevue travels south again next weekend when they visit Oklahoma City for three games at OCU. BU plays #21 Central Methodist (10 a.m.) and #8 Oklahoma City (12:30 p.m.) on Saturday before squaring off against Texas A&M-Texarkana on Sunday at 12:30 p.m.