Patterson's monster day lifts Bruins to NSAA Title
JT Patterson hit three home runs in the opener and finished the day 5-for-6, adding a triple and totaling seven RBI to lead BU to the NSAA Regular-Season Title with a sweep of Waldorf on Sunday.
Game 1 Box Score
Game 2 Box Score
FOREST CITY, Iowa -- JT Patterson was 5-for-6 at the plate and drove in seven runs to lead the No. 25 Bellevue University baseball to sweep a double-header against Waldorf University to open a four-game series North Star Athletic Association series on Sunday afternoon at the Waldorf Baseball Field.
The Bruins cruised to a 16-0 win in the opener, behind a complete game from Stephen Knapp and yet another three-home run game from JT Patterson, before going on to defeat the Warriors by a score of 12-3 in the nightcap.
With Sunday's sweep Bellevue has locked up the No. 1-seed in next weekend's NSAA Tournament where they will meet No. 6-seed Viterbo. Waldorf with be the No. 2-seed and face No. 5-seed Mayville State in the first round of the tournament.
Records:
#25 Bellevue: 37-14 (21-1 NSAA)
Waldorf: 28-18 (18-4 NSAA)
Game One: Bellevue 16, Waldorf 0 (7 Innings)
JT Patterson became the first NAIA player to record three separate three-home run games in the same season as Bellevue rolled to a 16-0 series-opening win over Waldorf on Sunday afternoon.
Bellevue wasted no time getting on the board as BU put up a four-run first inning. With the score already 2-0, Riley Baasch sent a line drive into a stiff wind blowing in from left, over the left-center fence to put the Bruins up 4-0 after a half inning of play.
The Bruins added a run to their lead on a run-scoring single off the bat of Tanaka in the second.
Patterson went deep in three-straight at-bats over the third, fourth, and sixth innings to run his season total to 20 and move into fifth place on the national leaderboard.
BU finished the game off with three more runs in the seventh to account for the final margin.
Stephen Knapp (9-2) struck out four Warriors in a four-hit shutout for Bellevue to earn the win.
Waldorf starter Mac Pearson (5-4) surrendered 11 runs on 11 hits as he recorded just one strikeout in five innings of work.
Game Two: Bellevue 12, Waldorf 3
Bellevue jumped out to an early lead and responded immediately after Waldorf tied the game en route to a 12-3 win to secure the 2019 NSAA Regular-Season crown.
In the nightcap, BU again hung a crooked number in the top of the first inning, using a wild pitch and an RBI-single from Cody Banks to grab an early 2-0 lead.
Waldorf tied the game with back-to-back two-out, RBI-doubles from Alejandro Gonzalez and Matt Palmer in the third inning.
The game did not stay tied long as Riley Baasch put Bellevue back on top in the fourth with a double down the left field line that scored Banks.
JT Patterson pushed the Bruin lead to 5-2 in the fifth with a two-run triple to center field to chase Warrior starter Heath Chapman. Patterson then came in to score on a sac fly from Kory Longaker to put BU up by four runs.
Baasch put the Bruins up 7-2 with a home run to lead off the sixth inning and then 8-2 when he drew a bases-loaded walk in the seventh. Austin Alexander put the game out of reach one batter later with a bases-loaded single to right to chase in two more runs. Stuart Eurich capped the scoring with a two-run double to right before being tagged out trying to stretch the play into a triple.
Waldorf scratched across a run on a sac fly in the bottom of the seventh.
Jarrett Poh (7-0) picked up the win for the Bruins. He threw a complete game and held Waldorf to three runs - two earned - on six hits as we worked around four free passes.
Chapman (5-2) suffered the loss for the Warriors, allowing six runs (five earned) on six hits and striking out five in 4.0 innings on the bump.
Up Next:
The Bruins and Warriors wrap up their regular-season schedules when they continue their four-game series tomorrow with a double-header beginning at noon.