BARBOURVILLE, Ky. - CIU baseball got back into Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) play on Thursday as they competed in a doubleheader with Union College. The meeting was the first between CIU (9-19, 0-11) and Union (5-7, 4-4 AAC) in baseball, and the Bulldogs got the best of the Rams in both games.
GAME ONE: UC 4 CIU 3: The game stayed deadlocked at 1-1 until the seventh inning when Union took a 3-1 lead. CIU fought back and tied the game at 3-3 thanks to a Robert Bell RBI-single and a Britton Morris run in the eighth. The Bulldogs regained the lead in the bottom of the inning, and CIU's bats fell silent in the ninth as the Rams lost 4-3.
BOX SCORE NOTES:
- Justin Parish pitched all eight innings with three K's while giving up seven hits and three earned runs.
- Left-fielder Robert Bell went 2-for-3 with an RBI.
GAME TWO: UC 5 CIU 4: A two-RBI double from Buddy Bleasdale gave CIU the 2-0 advantage in the first inning. The Rams did not score the rest of the way as they entered the seventh and final inning down 5-2. Shane Hammonds then started the seventh with a double to left field and scored a run on the next at-bat off a Joshua Hernadez RBI-triple. Hernadez then brought the deficit to just one run (5-4) on a Bleasdale RBI-single. The Rams then found themselves with the bases loaded and only one out; however, a ground ball back to the mound resulted in a double play dashing the Rams' hopes and ending the game in heartbreaking fashion.
BOX SCORE NOTES:
- Joshua Hernandez was stellar at the plate going 2-for-4 with two RBI's, a double, and a triple.
- Buddy Bleasdale continues to be a solid veteran presence as the graduate had three hits, three RBI's, and a double.
Up Next:
CIU is back in action versus Union on Friday as they will finish their series with the Bulldogs with a single game at 12 p.m.