ST. LOUIS, Mo. – The Bellarmine University baseball team opened the 2010 Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament with a 7-1 victory over Drury University on Thursday morning at the University of Missouri-St. Louis Baseball Field.

Third baseman Chris Wiedmar's three-run homerun down the left field line in the eighth inning provided the highlight of the day.  Wiedmar went 2-for-4 with a pair of runs.

Bellarmine starting pitcher Jason Sterrett pitched seven complete innings and allowed just one run off six hits, while striking out four.  Reliever Samuel Robinson faced only two more than the minimum number of batters in the final two innings to finish out the contest in a non-save situation.

Bellarmine got on the board in the first inning when left fielder Braxton Graven reached on a one-out fielding error by Drury starting pitcher Chris Marston.  Leadoff hitter and shortstop Mike Morrissette scored from third base on the play.

Morrissette led the club with three hits in three at-bats to go with his two runs and a walk.  Graven was the only other Knight with multiple hits for the game.

Drury tied the game at one in the fifth inning when second baseman Brett Gallion singled home right fielder Harrison Waters from third base.  The Knights responded with a pair of runs in the seventh inning, which included an RBI single by second baseman John Lyons and a bases loaded walk drawn by center fielder Patrick Brady.

Marston took the loss for the Panthers, allowing four runs (three earned) in 6.2 innings and striking out four.

With the win, Bellarmine advances in the eight-team, double-elimination tournament to a noon contest on Friday with the winner of Thursday afternoon's game between Northern Kentucky University and St. Joseph's College.

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