BLUEFIELD, Va. - CIU baseball hoped to capitalize off their NAIA top 25 win over No. 21 Bluefield College on Friday as they continued their conference series with the Rams from Virginia in a doubleheader on Saturday. Despite putting up their fair share of runs, CIU was defeated in both games. CIU moves to 11-22 on the season and 2-13 in the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC).
GAME ONE: BLUEFIELD 5 CIU 1: Peyton Evans pitched a shutout until the sixth inning as the Rams clung to one 1-0 lead thanks to an RBI from Rodrigo Rodriguez. The Bluefield bats would get hot in the sixth, however, as they put up four runs in the bottom of the inning. Bluefield added one more in the eighth, dispatching CIU 5-1.
BOX SCORE NOTES:
- Robert Bell went 1-for-1 and was walked twice.
- Peyton Evans threw eight innings with two strikeouts as the freshman faced 35 batters.
GAME TWO: BLUEFIELD 18 CIU 7: Buddy Bleasdale put the Rams up 1-0 on a double in the top of the first inning, but Bluefield scored five runs in the bottom of the first to seize the 5-1 advantage. CIU responded with three runs of their own in the second before Bluefield exploded for seven runs in the bottom of the inning. Grant Bodison would hit a homerun late in the game, but the deficit was too much to overcome as CIU fell 18-7.
BOX SCORE NOTES:
- Grant Bodison had two RBI's and a solo homer as he went 1-for-3 at the plate.
- Joshua Hernandez picked up two RBI's, a hit, and was walked.
- Trent Polly came back to the mound for the Rams after being out due to injury and picked up two strikeouts in just over two innings.
What Coach Jonathan Johnson is saying: "Tough series against a very good Bluefield team. There is a reason they had only lost two games coming into our series. We will keep working and try to get better each week."
Up Next:
The Rams head to Montreat, N.C. for a three-game series with Montreat College beginning Friday, Mar. 25.
