Three-run ninth sees Bruins down Warner in nail-biter

LAKE WALES, Fla. -- Oak Held broke a 3-3 tie with an RBI-single to fuel a three-run ninth for the No. 7 Bellevue University baseball team as the Bruins picked up a 6-3 win over Warner University on Tuesday evening in non-conference action from Royals Field.

With the win, BU extends their win streak to four games, improving to 16-3 overall on the year. The loss drops the Royals to 12-10 on the season.

Bellevue 6, Warner 3

Gabriel Rodriguez staked Warner to a 1-0 lead with a sac fly to chase in Jhenzel Figueroa who led off the frame with a triple. Two batters later Adriel Torres-Gonzalez singled home another run to give Warner a 2-0 lead in the first.

Bellevue answered a half inning later with RBI-singles from Jaylan Ruffin and Oak Held to tie the game.

Dylan Holmes gave the Bruins the lead in the sixth. Ayden Makarus drew a walk to lead off the frame and stole second before Holmes chased him home with a go-ahead double.

Reid Madariaga settled in after the first – his first game action in nearly 10 months – as he scattered another handful of hits before departing with two outs and a runner on second in the sixth. Southpaw Garrett White came on to turn Figueroa around to hit from the right side and get a ground ball to Oak Held who made a sprawling stop at third and fire across the diamond to end the inning.

Rodriguez ripped a one-out triple off the wall in the bottom of the seventh and came around to score on JD Swarbrick's fourth base-hit of the game through the right side.

With pinch runner Jackson Polk on second with two outs in the eighth, Holmes ripped a single to right that looked like it had a chance to score the go-ahead run but Figueroa's throw was on the money and Polk was hosed at home to end the inning.

Held put the Bruins back on top in the ninth with a single back up the middle to score Ruffin from second. The throw went to the plate allowing Held to advance to second and Nick Gravel to take third after having singled one batter prior. After an intentional walk to Carter Claerhout loaded the bases, Makarus was hit by a pitch and Conner Boyd put down a squeeze but to chase in two more for a 6-3 BU lead.

Brody Burnette worked around a leadoff double and a one-out error in the ninth to log his seventh save of the season. Cannon Close (1-0) earned the win with a scoreless eighth inning for Bellevue.

Drew Owen (0-1), who came on in the ninth took the loss for the Royals, allowing three runs on two hits and a pair of walks while striking out one.

Top Performers

Bellevue University

Reid Madariaga – 5.2 IP, 2 ER, 8 H, 5 SO, 1 BB
Dylan Holmes – 2-4, double, RBI
Jaylan Ruffin – 2-3, RBI, run
Oak Held – 1-4, 2 RBI, run, go-ahead single in ninth
Nick Gravel – 2-4, run

Warner University

Evan Christ – 5 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, 3 SO, 1 BB
JD Swarbrick – 4-5, RBI
Jhenzel Figueroa – 3-5, double, triple, run
Gabriel Rodriguez – 2-4, triple, RBI, run

Inside the Numbers:

• Warner out-hit Bellevue 13-10 on the night but stranded 11 runners on base to 8 for BU
• Both team left seven in scoring position
• The Bruins were more efficient hitting in the clutch, going 5-13 with RISP and driving in 4-5 runners from third with less than 2 outs; Warner was 2-16 and 2-5 in those situations, respectively
• BU 20-14-2, has now won five-straight in the series, improving to 21-14-2 all-time against Warner
• Reid Madariaga made his Bellevue debut on the hill

Up Next:

Bellevue returns to action on Thursday, Mar. 12 when they take on Mayville State University at noon Central Time (1 p.m. local) in non-conference action from Chain of Lakes Field in Winter Haven, Fla. as part of the RussMatt Invitational.