OMAHA, Neb. -- The Bellevue University baseball team tallied 28 runs on 29 hits to pick up two more wins and sweep the four-game series from Viterbo University on Sunday afternoon at John Stella Field at Brown Park. BU won Sunday's opener 8-3 before pouring it on in a 20-3 win in the nightcap.
Bellevue, winners of four-straight, improves to 17-7 overall and 4-0 in NSAA play. Viterbo has now lost nine-straight to fall to 7-17 and 0-4 in conference action.
Alec Ackerman, Josh Vaughan, and Brenton Davis each drove in a pair of runs to help Bellevue secure the series victory with an 8-3 win in Sunday's opener.
McGrane Pledger (2-3) worked seven innings allowing just a pair of runs while scattering seven hits to earn the win. He struck out five and issued three walks.
Brandon Good singled home Camden Smith to open the scoring in the top of the first but that was the only run Pledger allowed until a solo home run by Zach Braun in the seventh.
After falling behind early, Alex Stufft singled home Ackerman in the bottom of the first. Ackerman would then chase in Kanta Kobayashi with a ground ball in the third inning.
Leading 2-1 in the fifth, Ackerman singled home Kobayashi and two batters later a double from Vaughan brought home both Conner Barnett and Ackerman.
Davis delivered a two-run single in the seventh that scored Stufft and Ackerman. Brennan Cascio scored the final run on a wild pitch, ball four to CJ Townsend.
Easton Brinton came on in the eighth and worked 1.1 before giving way to Bailey Link who retired both batters he faced to close out the victory in the ninth.
Cody Wells chased in a consolation run for the V-Hawks with a sac fly in the ninth.
Ben Strassman (1-4) took the loss for the V-Hawks, allowing five runs (four earned) on seven hits in 4.2 while striking out five and walking one batter.
Eleven Bruins recorded hits led by Andrew Ishii's 4-for-5 game in which he drove in four runs as Bellevue eclipsed the 20-run mark for the second time this season.
Viterbo jumped out to an early 2-0 lead despite not recording a hit in the first inning but Bellevue responded with a five-spot in the bottom of the first, highlighted by a two-run single from Ishii.
The first inning featured a combined five errors, spoiling what was otherwise a very well-played series defensively.
The V-Hawks got a run back on a Keaton Westhoff RBI-single in the second but again Bellevue responded with a crooked number, scoring four times on five hits to stretch the lead to 9-3.
A run in the third and three more in the fourth made it 13-3 as Bellevue had the win effectively secured early.
The Bruins piled on six more in the fifth, featuring a pinch-hit grand slam from Anthony Lind highlighting the frame. Cade Sakamoto also went deep as a pinch-hitter in the inning.
Blake Crippen (4-2) limited Viterbo to two earned runs (three total) on seven hits in five solid innings. Bailey Link struck out three in two innings of one-hit relief to close it out.
Jacob Pinc (1-4) allowed 10 runs – six earned – on nine hits and a pair of walks in three innings of work. A trio of V-Hawk relievers combined to allowing 10 more runs (6 earned) on eight hits.
Up Next:
Bellevue is scheduled to travel to Fremont, Neb. on Tuesday, Mar. 22 for a 5 p.m. first pitch against Midland University. With a less than favorable forecast, fans are encouraged to stay up to date on potential changes via BUBruins.com.
