Slow start spells trouble for baseball in Belmont opener

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MOREHEAD, Ky. – The Morehead State baseball team had 15 hits and scored eight times Thursday in its series opener with Belmont, but unfortunately the visiting Bruins built a 12-1 lead after three innings and kept pushing runs across throughout the day, ultimately defeating MSU 20-8 at Allen Field.
 
Belmont scored 20+ runs for the second straight game and improved to 13-8 overall and 3-1 in the Ohio Valley Conference. Morehead State fell for the sixth straight game and slipped to 12-9 overall and 3-4 in the league. It was the first home loss of 2016 for the Eagles and just their third loss in the last 24 games at Allen Field.
 
Belmont smacked three home runs off MSU starter Luke Humphreys (3-2) in the second inning when it scored five times. The Bruins strung together seven hits and crossed the plate seven times in the third. BU also added two runs each in the fifth, sixth and eighth innings.
 
MSU scored seven of its eight runs in the final three innings. Sophomore leftfielder Tyler Niemann cranked a solo homer in the seventh and added an RBI double in the eighth. Junior catcher Jimmy Wright tattooed a two-run triple down the right field line to score juniors Jesus Carrera and Michael Patrick in the ninth.
 
Belmont, which finished with 20 hits off six Eagle pitchers, had eight guys with multi-hit days. Tyler Walsh and Ben Kocher led the way with three hits and three RBI apiece.
 
Belmont starter Aaron Quillen (3-2) recorded nine strikeouts in eight frames and surrendered 14 of the Eagles' 15 hits. The MSU pitching staff allowed 10 walks and hit two Bruin batters.
 
Niemann, Carrera, and freshmen Niko Hulsizer and Trevor Snyder tallied two hits each.
 
The teams will battle in game two of the series Friday at 4 p.m. ET.