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Bellarmine University Athletics

Matt Higgins
Brian Westerholt
8
Bellarmine BELL 3-25
11
Winner Eastern Illinois EIU 18-7
Bellarmine BELL
3-25
8
Final
11
Eastern Illinois EIU
18-7
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Bellarmine BELL 0 3 0 0 0 1 0 4 0 8 10 3
Eastern Illinois EIU 1 4 0 0 0 4 0 2 X 11 8 1

W: DECICCO, J (1-0) L: Craven, Matt (1-5) S: ROBBINS, Z (9)

Game Recap: Baseball | | by Adam Pruiett, Assistant Director of Athletic Communications

Higgins continues HR/RBI climb but baseball drops 11-8 contest to EIU

RANTOUL, Ill. — The Bellarmine University baseball team launched three home runs, including two off the bat of Matt Higgins, but the Knights fell 11-8 to Eastern Illinois on Tuesday at the Rantoul Family Sports Complex.

Higgins smashed a pair of two-run homers in going deep for the third time in two games for Bellarmine (3-25). The senior left fielder now has eight home runs this season and boosted his career total to 31, which ties Dewey Minton for fourth on the program's all-time list. With four runs driven in, Higgins also moved into a tie for fourth with Andy Lyon on the career RBI list with 153.

Peyton Back had a big game as well against Eastern Illinois (18-8). The junior third baseman went 3-for-5 with a double and clubbed his fourth home run of the season.

Bellarmine took a 3-1 lead in the second after senior center fielder Jack Ockerman squeezed in a run, and Higgins followed with his first two-run shot. The Panthers responded with four runs in the bottom half, but Back cranked a solo homer in the sixth to cut the deficit to 5-4.

Eastern Illinois answered again, this time with four runs in the bottom of the sixth, but Bellarmine didn't go quietly. The Knights countered with four runs in the eighth, as sophomore catcher Ashton Smith notched his first career hit in a Bellarmine uniform with an RBI double, Ockerman plated a run on a ground out and Higgins walloped his second two-run homer of the contest.

Higgins' second blast rallied Bellarmine to within 9-8, but Eastern Illinois once again had a response, tacking on a pair of insurance runs in the bottom half and closing the door in the ninth.

Junior righthander Ryan Johnson fanned three in 2.1 perfect innings of relief for Bellarmine. Freshman righthander Arren Hash tossed 1.1 scoreless innings of relief and senior lefthander Nick Parrish added 1.0 shutout inning.

The Knights will host North Alabama in a three-game ASUN series starting at 2 p.m. (ET) Friday.

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