LOUISVILLE, Ky. — An epic day of baseball for Bellarmine University began with jubilation and ended in disappointment.

On Sunday at Knights Field, BU rallied from a five-run deficit to defeat Alderson Broaddus 7-6 on sophomore left fielder Griffin Neuer's walk-off RBI single. In the evening, the Knights engaged in a five-hour slugfest with Hillsdale at St. Xavier High School, ultimately falling 21-19 despite a grand slam from Neuer and a three-run homer from junior first baseman Nick Wright.

In the opener against Alderson Broaddus (1-3), Bellarmine (2-2) found itself trailing 5-0 after four innings, but the Knights erupted for six runs in the fifth. The big blow was delivered by senior third baseman Cole Metcalfe, who drilled a three-run double to left. Wright followed with a go-ahead RBI double to right center.

Alderson Broaddus tied it up in the sixth, and things stayed that way until the bottom of the ninth. Freshman second baseman Derek Burns led off with a walk, advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by senior center fielder Jes Staples and sprinted home with the winning run when Neuer laced a hard ground ball down the first-base line and into right field.

Wright went 3 for 4 against the Battlers, and freshman right fielder Zac Wiley added two hits, including a double. Sophomore left-hander Hunter Spencer (1-0) notched his first collegiate win with 1.1 scoreless innings of relief.

Bellarmine's clash with Hillsdale (5-2) was an offensive showcase. The teams combined for 40 runs on 40 hits, with the Chargers accounting for 21 in both areas and the Knights amassing 19 in both areas. Each squad launched three homers.

Hillsdale scored three runs apiece in the first, third, fourth, sixth and 11th innings while posting four runs in the seventh. Bellarmine scored nine runs in the first and four each in the fifth and seventh innings.

Ironically, after both teams piled up 18 runs over seven frames, pitching took over and each unit went scoreless for three innings. It could have been four straight for Bellarmine's pitching staff, but a two-out fly ball in the 11th was misplayed resulting in a three-base error. The miscue opened the door for three unearned runs to come across for Hillsdale. Neuer cut the deficit to two with an RBI single in the bottom half, but Chris McDonald induced a ground-ball double play and then a fly out to finish off the marathon matchup.

Bellarmine's nine-run first inning was highlighted by Wright's three-run shot, the first home run of Staples' collegiate career and a two-run triple by sophomore shortstop Drew Greenwood. Wiley and freshman designated hitter Josh Finerty both delivered two-run singles in the fifth, and Neuer tied the game at 18 in the seventh when he cranked a grand slam down the right field line.

In the second game, Neuer was 3 for 5 with six RBIs and four runs scored. Staples went 3 for 4 with three runs scored, Wright was 3 for 6 with three RBIs, Metcalfe chipped in three hits including two doubles and Wiley and Greenwood both had two hits, two RBIs and two runs scored.

Bellarmine plays Tuesday and Wednesday at Lee (Tenn.) University.

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ALDERSON BROADDUS BOX SCORE (HTM)
HILLSDALE BOX SCORE (HTM)