The Bruins completed their weekend series against Trinity Baptist College Saturday afternoon. The two teams split the day with the Bruins winning game one 5-4 and the Eagles winning game two 9-8. Joshua Legnard pitched a complete game for the Bruins in the early timeslot striking out eight batters. Mack Ritter started the second game for the Bruins and struck out six of his own.
"We advanced our game this weekend with great games today," stated Head Coach Brent Casteel. "We hit the ball well, but couldn't find as many key hits as Trinity did. We definitely became a better team after this series!"
It was a beautiful, bright, and sunny day for baseball in Jacksonville, Florida. The temperatures reached high 80s and pushed into the low 90s during the hottest parts of the day.
Kyle Prouse was the leadoff batter for the Bruins in the first game, but struggled at the plate in his first at bat. With one down, Evan Walker grounded out for the second out of the inning. The Bruins found their first base runner in Conley Burk after he reached first on an error from the third baseman. Up next, Kam Lance singled and Burk made his way over to third base to get runners at the corners. The Eagle finished the inning after JC Poe flied out to centerfield. In the bottom of the inning, the Bruins went one, two, three with three straight groundouts.
In the second inning, the Bruins quickly loaded the bases and then had a runner come home after a Kyle Prouse got himself a walk. The Bruins took a 1-0 lead into the bottom of the inning where Legnard struck out all three batters. The Bruins couldn't get anywhere in the third inning and the Eagles would take a 3-1 lead after a full three innings.
The teams remained locked until the sixth inning when the Bruins started off with a walk and a single where Sam Gonzalez scored from first after an error. With two on, Evan Walker doubled two score another run and tying the game at 3-3. A sac fly from Kam Lance gave the Bruins a one run advantage before going in the bottom of the inning where Legnard struck out two more.
Looking for some insurance runs, the Bruins tacked on another to give themselves a 5-3 lead before heading into the bottom of the seventh. The seventh started out with the Eagles reaching first from an error and then a double scored him cutting the lead to 5-4. A sac bunt would advance the runner to third, but a ground out and fly out would get the Bruins out of the inning and notch them the win.
After a thirty minute break between games, the two programs were back at it with Mack Ritter getting the nod to start. By this point, the temperatures were reaching their hottest for the day and with little breeze and no cloud coverage, it was brutal.
The Bruins started the inning with a pair of outs, but found two runners on when Conley Burk and Kam Lance both singled. A fielder's choice sent them back to the dugout and Ritter would face his first batters. The Eagles threatened early getting two men in scoring position, but a timely strike out ended the inning before any damage could be done.
After the Bruins went one, two, three in the top of the second, the Eagles did more than threaten with their next set of batters. Three hits produced two runs for the Eagles and the early advantage in the contest. In response, the Bruins posted five hits and three runs to take the lead in the top of the fourth inning. They held their 4-2 lead to the fifth inning before tacking on four more runs for an 8-2 advantage.
Their lead would be short lived as the Eagles kept finding the gaps. The 8-2 lead would get cut down to 8-5 before the Bruins could get off the field and go back on the offensive. Three singles would load the bases for the Bruins, but they couldn't get anybody home before ending the inning. The Eagles scored four more runs in the bottom of the sixth and took a 9-8 lead which was enough to keep themselves from getting swept. Three straight strikeouts in the top of the seventh would send the Bruins home with a split on the day, but two wins out of three games played. The Bruins record heading into next week improves to 8-24.
Up next, the Bruins will host Brevard College this upcoming Tuesday, April 23. Game time is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. at Conestee Park. For more Bruins content, be sure to check out
BJUbruins.com.
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