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NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Belmont starting left-handed pitcher Dan Ludwig only allowed three hits in a complete-game effort, and the Bruins got an early jump on the Morehead State baseball team en route to a 9-0 win Friday at Rose Park.
Belmont, which has now won six of seven games in the series with MSU, improved to 10-8 overall and 3-0 in the Ohio Valley Conference. Morehead State fell to 11-8 overall and 3-4 in the league.
Ludwig, who improved to 2-1, coaxed 13 ground outs, including double plays in the first and second frames, and did not walk a batter.
"We got beat in all three phases of the game today," Head Coach Mike McGuire said. "Obviously Ludwig is a good pitcher who has had a good career here, but I was disappointed we didn't do anything offensively against him. We didn't make any in-game adjustments. We looked like a lineup full of inexperienced players today, but we are a veteran club, and I expect a lot more out of us. We have to pitch better too. They only had a few positive innings, but we have to avoid those big innings."
The hosts plated four runs via four hits in the first off MSU freshman right-hander Aaron Leasher. Designated hitter Nick Egli drove in a pair with a single up the middle.
The Bruins added three in the fourth and a pair in the fifth. Right-fielder Brennan Washington launched a two-run homer, and center fielder Drew Ferguson raced home on a wild pitch in the fourth. In the fifth, the home squad got a run on a sacrifice fly and an error.
Leasher surrendered seven runs, all earned, in four innings to dip to 1-2. He struck out five. Senior righty Blake Smith finished the contest and gave up just one earned run.
Senior catcher Chris Robinson and senior first baseman Kane Sweeney extended their reached-base streaks to 26 games. Robinson singled in the fourth inning, and Sweeney was plunked by a Ludwig pitch in the sixth.
The teams will play game two of the series on Saturday. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET. The game will be shown liVe on OVCDigitalNetwork.com.
