OMAHA, Neb. -- The top four batters in the Bruin lineup had multiple hits and Leland Tilley picked up his first win of the season as the Bellevue University baseball team rolled past Briar Cliff University, 11-1, Wednesday in the Bruins' home opener at Westgate Field.
The Bruins (14-6-2) will entertain Waldorf College in a four-game conference series at Westgate Field on Thursday and Friday, March 20-21. The doubleheaders begin at 1 p.m. both days.
Nate Mullins went 3-for-4 with a double and three RBIs and Kyle Kinman also picked up three hits with a double and a home run and two RBIs and three runs scored to pace the BU offense. Galli Cribbs drove in two runs, going 2-for-4 with a triple and two runs scored.
Bellevue outhit BCU, 13-4, with four extra-base hits in the victory.
Thanks to three doubles and a triple, the Bruins raced out to a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the first as BU batted through the order. Kinman, Cribbs and Mullins all drove in runs in the opening frame.
A ground-out RBI by Cribbs and a bases-loaded walk by Colby Fitzgerald gave the Bruins a 6-0 advantage in the second.
After the Bruins led off the third inning with three-consecutive singles, a two-run single by Mullins and an RBI single by Levi Cartas expanded the lead to 9-0.
A solo homer by Kinman and an RBI single by Joe Mancuso brought the lead to 11-0 in the bottom of the fifth inning.
The Chargers avoided the shutout with a solo homer by Jake Erichsen to lead off the seventh inning.
Tilley (1-1) got the complete-game win, allowing four hits with three walks and seven strikeouts in seven innings of work.
