LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The No. 20 Bellarmine University baseball team had its most prodigious offensive performance thus far this season in Sunday's 12-5 win over Hillsdale at Knights Field.

Bellarmine's 12 runs and 16 hits were both season highs as the Knights (4-3) took two of the three games in the series against the regional counterpart Chargers (2-4).

After having uncharacteristic struggles at the plate in Saturday's doubleheader, junior left fielder Matt Higgins was back to form in the finale, going 5 for 6 with a double, three runs scored and two RBIs. He recorded hits in his first five plate appearances.

Junior second baseman Justin Rouse went 3 for 4, freshman designated hitter Gabe Bratetic walloped a three-run homer among his two hits and senior third baseman Josh Finerty and junior shortstop Clayton Mehlbauer also collected two hits. Junior right fielder Jacob Mulcahy amassed three RBIs.

Senior right-hander Deylen Miley (1-0) earned the win after allowing three earned runs on seven hits with seven strikeouts in 6.0 innings. Junior right-hander Blake Wheeler and freshman right-hander Ryan Johnson both pitched a scoreless inning of relief.

The decisive inning came in the sixth, when Bellarmine racked up five runs in breaking a 4-4 tie. With one out, freshman center fielder Robert Sproul doubled and scored on a Higgins single. Mulcahy followed by rifling a two-run triple down the right-field line, and he scored on an RBI single by Mehlbauer. The Knights added a fifth run for a 9-4 lead when Hillsdale dropped a pop up.

Bellarmine had its second three-run inning in the seventh. Higgins and Finerty both had RBI singles in the frame. The Knights' first three-run inning came in the fourth compliments of Bratetic, who launched his first collegiate homer, a three-run shot to left.

Bellarmine will play March 3 at Lee (Tenn.) University.

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