Junior right fielder Brandon Rawe clobbered two home runs and freshman right-hander Luke Humphreys allowed just one run in 6.2 innings to help the Morehead State baseball team post a 12-2 win over Belmont on Friday afternoon (March 28) at MSU’s Allen Field.
The Eagles, who have won three of their last four Ohio Valley Conference contests, improve to 12-13 overall, 5-5 in league play and 4-4 at home. The Bruins, who have dropped nine straight affairs, drop to 7-18 overall, 0-7 in conference action and 0-6 on the road.
"This was a good bounce back after a disappointing performance on Wednesday. It's always good to set the tone early in a conference series. We played well in all three phases today, and we're pretty tough to beat when we do that,” MSU Head Coach Mike McGuire said.
Rawe, who became the first Morehead State player to crush two long balls in a game since April 21, 2012, finished 3-for-5 with two runs and four RBI. He opened MSU's three-run fourth with a solo shot and highlighted its four-run fifth with a three-run round-tripper.
Morehead State collected 16 hits, which matched its second-best output this season. The Eagles recorded at least one back knock in six of their eight at bats.
Rawe, junior second baseman Tyler Bigler (3-for-5, 2 R, 3 RBI), junior catcher Chris Robinson (2-for-3, 2 R), senior third baseman Jeff Birkofer (2-for-4, 2 RBI) and junior shortstop Robby Spencer (2-for-3, 1 R, 1 RBI) all posted multi-hit performances for MSU.
Morehead State held a 7-0 lead after six innings. Belmont tallied its first run in the seventh, but the Eagles stormed back with five insurance runs in the eighth.
Humphreys yielded just six hits and three walks while striking out seven for his first collegiate win. He faced 29 batters and fired 102 pitches before giving way to the Morehead State bullpen. Sophomore right-hander Matt Ellenbest notched the final seven outs.
"Luke has a good arm, and we think he has a bright future. Luke has gotten better each time out (as a true freshman) this year, and we're excited to see where he goes from here,” Mike McGuire added.
The Bruins managed eight hits, but stranded 12 runners. Junior left-hander Dan Ludwig was pinned with his fifth loss and is still looking for his first win in 2014. He allowed seven runs, all earned, 10 hits and two bases on balls while fanning six in six innings.
"We're continuing to grow and mature. The team that showed up at Northern Kentucky won't go too far, but the club that showed up today has the potential to make some noise in the OVC. The plan is to have more performances like this,” said Mike McGuire.
Game two of Morehead State's baseball series with Belmont was suspended in the top of the second inning Saturday (March 29) with Belmont leading 1-0. The game will resume as a nine-inning contest on Sunday (March 30) at 11 a.m. Game three of the series will be a seven-inning contest and will start after the completion of the suspended game.
The Bruins scored in the first inning on an RBI single by third baseman Matt Beatty. In the top of the second, Belmont had a runner on second base with one out and a two-ball, no-strike count on the batter when the game was suspended.
