The Bruins baseball team wrapped up the regular season on Saturday as the team split their Saturday doubleheader against Trinity Baptist College with an 8-4 win and a 7-1 loss in Jacksonville, Florida. The Bruins head into the regional tournament at 6-24 after the two games today.
"It was a bittersweet day for us today," Bruins Head Coach Brent Casteel said. "We really showed up that first game and did a lot of things well. Unfortunately, things just didn't go our way in game two. Trinity continued to apply the pressure in the second game and we just couldn't keep up."
The Bruins came into the game on the heels of a 7-3 win on Friday night. The Bruins used a four-run 7th inning to battle back for the win over TBC. The team looked to carry that momentum into the season finale as they took the field for game one.
The Bruins turned to Daniel Barcena to pitch for the team and the freshman turned in a strong performance pitching a complete game while allowing only five hits and striking out three. The Eagles jumped out to an early lead as Mark Rodgers singled home a run in the bottom of the 1st to make it 1-0.
As the game went on, the Bruins continued to give themselves chances, but the team couldn't seem to put a run across as the score remained 1-0 heading into the top of the 6th.
The Bruins then got things going as the team showed great discipline at the plate which brought home two runs on walks to help the team take a 2-1 lead. Bryson French then singled home two more runs before a wild pitch allowed more runners to score as part of an eight-run 6th inning for the Bruins. When the dust settled, the Bruins had come roaring back to take an 8-1 lead.
With momentum, the Bruins came out confident defensively but the Eagles tried to mount one last rally in the final innings. The Bruins were able to keep the Eagles at bay as they held on to win game one 8-4.
In game two, the Bruins looked to complete the sweep as they started Conley Burk on the mound for the series finale. Both teams were held scoreless in the opening inning, but the Eagles struck first in the bottom of the 2nd as Ryan Heller singled home a run and TBC added two more to take a 3-0 lead after two.
The Bruins cut into the lead in the top of the 3rd as Isaiah Brandt singled to score Cheo Arias and make it 3-1. The Bruins looked to complete their comeback but the Eagles had other plans as a single from Dylan Owens drove in two runs in the bottom of the 5th as part of a three-run inning for TBC as the team took a 6-1 lead. The Bruins tried to battle back but the Eagles finished off the Bruins 7-1 in game two.
"We're happy to win two of three this weekend as we look toward the regional tournament," Coach Casteel said. "It was a pretty good weekend for us overall and we're hoping to bring our best as we head to Arkansas."
The Bruins combined for fourteen hits on the day as the team was able to close the regular season winning two of their last three games. This inaugural season, the Bruins have competed in the Non-Dually Affiliated Group (NDAG). The team will play their regional tournament May 10-12 in Springdale, Arkansas. Details about seeding for the tournament will be made available in this coming week.
