COLUMBUS, Ga.—Bellarmine dropped its final two games of the CSU Classic hosted by Columbus State University on Sunday.  The Knights lost a tough battle with Union University by a count of 10-9 then went toe-to-toe with No. 5 Young Harris but fell 4-2. 
 
The opener against Union was a wild affair that saw Bellarmine make a comeback before the Bulldogs turned in a rally of their own, scoring four times in the bottom of the seventh to take the victory. 
 
For Bellarmine it was a game of missed opportunities while Union came through in the clutch time and time again. Showing the tenacity of their nickname, the Bulldogs plated nine of their 10 runs with two outs on the scoreboard. Bellarmine, on the other hand, left nine runners on base including ending two innings with the bases loaded.
 
Bellarmine got a run in the top of the first on a Shelby Kelley RBI single, but the Knights left the sacks full to end the inning.
 
The Bulldogs came through with timely hitting beginning in the bottom of the first.  With the Knights just one strike away from getting out of the inning unscathed, Union came up with back-to-back singles to score three times and take a 3-1 lead. 
 
Union tacked on two more runs in the second inning, starting the rally after the first two batters were retired.  
 
The Knights came back to tie it in the top of the third, scoring four runs without the benefit of a base hit. Bellarmine drew four walks, two batters were hit and the Bulldogs made one error, and when the dust settled on the inning, the Knights had tied the game at five runs apiece.
 
Union came right back to claim the lead in the home half of the third, once again striking with two outs as the Bulldogs' Parker Davis uncorked a solo homer.
 
In the fourth, again the Knights battled back and evened the score.  Singles by Kelley and Sydney Young followed by a wild pitch put runners in scoring position, and Sarah Ratterman's grounder was enough to score Kelley from third.
 
Bellarmine finally kept the Bulldogs off the scoreboard in the fourth inning, and Knights roared back to take a 9-6 lead in the top of the fifth when freshman shortstop Alexis Hargrove connected for a three-run homer.   
 
Neither team produced much offense in their next two at-bats, but the Bulldogs again came through in the clutch in the bottom of seventh.  The first three batters reached base including an RBI single.  After a walk loaded the bases, the Knights got back-to-back outs, the latter driving in a run on a sacrifice fly.  However, the third out would not come as Bulldog leadoff batter Alyssa Ward delivered a two-run, two-out single as the Union got the walk off victory.  
 
HTM BOX SCORE (BU-UU)
 
The Knights didn't have time to lick their wounds as they had to go right back to work against the No. 5 team in the country—the Young Harris Mountain Lions. 
 
The Mountain Lions wasted no time getting on the scoreboard, plating a run in the top of the first.  The Knights had an answer, however, as Bellarmine came back to tie it in the home half when Hannah Webb belted a solo homer to left.
 
The Knights eventually found the competition to be as good as advertised with Webb's homer being the only Bellarmine hit until the fifth inning.  By then, Young Harris had built its lead to 4-1.  The good news for the Knights is that their next hit produced a run. Ratterman was hit by a pitch to become just Bellarmine's third baserunner of the game, and Anna Greenwell followed by stroking a double to left center, and Ratterman scored from first. The Knights would go on to load the bases by drawing a walk and getting hit by a pitch, but another hit didn't come the Knights' way and Young Harris pitcher Sam Davis got out of the jam.
 
Bellarmine collected just third hit of the game in the bottom of the sixth, but Kelly's single would provide the only baserunner, and the Knights went to last inning trailing 4-2.
 
With their last chance, the Knights got baserunners on first and second thanks to a pair of walks, but again, the clutch hit did not come as Davis finished with a complete-game 3-hitter.
 
HTM BOX SCORE (BU-YHC)
 
The Knights, who drop to 3-5 on the season, make their home debut on Saturday when they take on Ferris State and Findlay at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
 
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