BARTLESVILLE, Okla. -- The third-seeded Bellevue University baseball team used four key runs in the top of the eighth inning to pull out a 5-3 come-from-behind victory over second-seeded York College Thursday afternoon in the Bruins' first game of the 2015 MCAC Baseball Tournament.
Bellevue improved to 42-12 on the season and will now play on Friday at 3:30 p.m. against the winner of the Oklahoma Wesleyan-College of Ozarks' game being played later tonight.
York fell to 39-16 overall with the loss and will play at noon on Friday against Central Baptist College in an elimination game.
The Bruins took an early 1-0 lead on a ground-out RBI by Colton Nash that scored Ross Feeley from third. York quickly responded with a sacrifice fly to right field by Garret Anctil to knot the game at 1-apiece in the bottom of the first.
The Panthers took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the fourth when Ivan Perez scored from third on a wild pitch from BU starter Steve Sarcone.
York increased the advantage to 3-1 in the fifth when Rudy Perez' sacrifice fly to left field plated Jordan Suter, who led off the inning with a triple to right field.
Kevin Rodriguez ignited the Bruins' eighth inning with a solo homer to left field to pull the Bruins to within one run. Gabriel De La Rosa gave BU the lead with a two-run single to left field later in the inning. The Bruins also scored off a wild pitch by PJ Matha to take a 5-3 lead.
Sarcone (9-1) retired nine out of the last 10 batters to earn his ninth victory of the year. He surrendered just three hits while striking out six and walking two in nine complete innings.
Brad Lindsley (9-4), who allowed just one hit in the first seven innings, suffered the loss, scattering four hits with four strikeouts in 7 2/3 innings of work.
