Baseball rolls past Belmont

 NASHVILLE, Tenn. –With a freshman on the mound and the Aces trailing 6-0 after the first inning on Wednesday evening, things could’ve certainly taken a turn for the worse for the University of Evansville baseball team, but a veteran-laden squad put away that worry quickly, scoring six in the second en route to a 13-7 victory over Belmont at E.S. Rose Park

“When you come down here and spot them six runs in the first, you get a little bit concerned,” UE head coach Wes Carroll said. “It was great to have those at-bats in the second put some pressure on their starter. That let us all take a deep breath, and then Alex goes back up there and puts up three goose eggs after that to give us a chance.”

A pair of errors and a trio of hits seemed to doom Alex Weigand in his first career start, but the southpaw out of Bourbonnais, Ill., buckled down to and didn’t allow another hit over the next three frames.

“That was great to see from Alex,” said UE starting catcher Boomer Synek. “To give up six runs like that in the first inning of your first collegiate start is scary. We didn’t give him a whole lot of help with the way we played behind him, and it was nice to bounce back in the second inning to tie it up and give him a chance to go back out there and compete the way he can. That was very big for him and for the rest of us too.”

Weigand didn’t pitch long enough to earn the decision, and he finished the day with seven runs allowed (four earned) on three hits over 4.1 innings.

Meanwhile, the Aces offense started to heat up. UE’s first four hitters in the second stanza would reach safely, and a bases-loaded walk and Synek single would make it 6-3 to chase Belmont starter Alex Ward from the mound. The Aces would score another on a Kyle Klotz wild pitch before Shain Showers doubled home two more to even things up.

“It’s always a great sign when you can find different ways to get back into a game this early in the season,” Carroll explained. “We could’ve easily just rolled over after that first inning, but we were able to fight and claw and get back into it. That kind of fight tells you a lot about this team. We have a lot of upperclassmen in the line-up, and I think it shows in games like this. It was great to see.”

Showers and Synek were two of seven UE players to record a hit in the game, with the latter leading the way, finishing 4-for-6 with three runs batted in and a pair of scores. Josh Jyawook also starred, going 2-for-3 with three scores, and Korbin Williams ended 3-for-4 with a walk.

“We have a strong team here and we have a lot of chemistry, and I just try to feed off of that,” Synek said. “A lot of the credit for games like this goes to the people in front of and behind me in the line-up, and I just keep trying to do all the little things right to be successful. It seems to be working out so far.”

Jyawook and Williams would combine to give the Aces the lead in the fifth, and an Eric McKibban sacrifice fly doubled the advantage.

Rafael Bournigal reclaimed a score for the Bruins in the ensuing half-inning, but Jyawook was there to respond, tripling home a pair before touching home on another wild pitch. Synek rounded out the offensive display for the Aces with a two-run double in the ninth.

Bournigal finished with two runs for the hosts without registering a hit. Elsewhere in the Bruin line-up, Brennan Washington and Chas Hadden enjoyed two-hit days as Belmont was out-hit in the contest 13-6.

Brian Jestice, who tossed a three-hit final 4.2 frames, was credited with the win, while Klotz was pegged with the loss.

“This may have been the best-pitched seven-run game that I’ve ever seen,” Carroll said. “I really like how Boomer and Brian got in sync and kept them off balance. He kept putting up zeroes, and it was a really big lift for our pitching staff.”

The Aces will return to action this weekend with the first home series of the season as Northern Illinois will pay a visit to Charles H. Braun Stadium on Friday.

NOTES: The Aces, who scored 15 runs in Sunday’s win over Monmouth, have scored double-digit runs in back-to-back games … That hasn’t happened since 14-6 and 24-3 decisions over IPFW and Austin Peay in April of 2011 … The last time it occurred in back-to-back contests on the road was in 2007 when UE followed up an 11-8 win over Bradley with a 13-9 victory at Louisville … Wednesday marked the first midweek game of the season for UE … Since 1978, the Aces have posted a 2-8 record against Belmont … Wednesday was the first win over Belmont in Nashville … The previous win was a 1-0 decision in 11 innings on May 2, 2012 at Braun Stadium … The Aces are 41-22-2 against teams that hail from the state of Tennessee.