The Bruins baseball team opened the 2022 season with a loss on Friday night as the team fell to Milligan University 5-1 at Conestee Park in Greenville, South Carolina. The Bruins struggled to get their bats going in the loss as the team opens the season at 0-1.
"I'm very proud of our guys as they have been working so hard," Bruins Head Baseball Coach Brent Casteel said. "We've only had a few days of practice because of the rain and weather. We came out and battled tonight and if we could have gotten our bats going tonight it may have been a different result for us."
Milligan University came into Friday's game at 6-3 on the season. The two teams met last year with Milligan winning both games 9-0. The Bruins fans were out in full voice as the 2022 season was set to begin.
As the game began, the Buffs came out strong with back to back hits eventually taking a 1-0 lead in the top of the first. Henry Wallach battled back from an early hole as the Bruins got out of the first inning. In the bottom of the first, a balk allowed Isaiah Brandt to score as the Bruins tied the game at 1-1.
The Buffaloes would take the lead in the 3rd inning on a pass ball to make it 2-1. The Bruins tried to battle back but the team couldn't seem to find an answer for Milligan pitcher Andrei Beal as the sophomore pitcher had 16 strikeouts in seven innings of work.
In the top of the 5th, the Buffaloes extended their lead as Braden Spano doubled to put Milligan up 3-1. The Bruins couldn't seem to battle back as the team mustered just three hits in the game. The Buffaloes were able to add two runs late in the game as they went on to win 5-1.
"We just need to trust our bats," Coach Casteel said. "We just have to have the right mindset. We know how to swing the bats and we just have to trust that and get better."
The Bruins will play a doubleheader against Milligan University on Saturday with the first game of the day scheduled for 12:30 p.m. at Conestee Park.
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