Holmes' late heroics power No. 7 Bruins to fifth-straight win
WINTER HAVEN, Fla. -- Dylan Holmes singled home the go-ahead run in the eight to power the No. 7-ranked Bellevue University baseball team past Mayville State University 4-2 at Chain of Lakes Field on Thursday afternoon.
The Bruins improve to 17-3 on the strength of their fifth-straight victory while Mayville State falls to 12-6 after having won 10 of their last 12 ballgames.
Bellevue 4, Mayville State 2
Kenji Miller allowed a solo home to the first batter her faced but was otherwise efficient in producing a quality start for Bellevue in a low-scoring affair.
Trailing 1-0 in the third, Nick Gravel took Garrett Lundmark deep to tie the game for Bellevue. It was the only real blemish on Lundmark's pitching line as he and Miller locked heads in a gritty pitcher's duel.
With both starters out of the game, Dylan Holmes ripped a two-out single off reliever Benjamin Larson to chase Oak Held in with the go-ahead run in the eighth.
Gravel added a sac fly and Held belted his second long ball of the year in the ninth as the Bruins tacked on a pair of insurance runs.
Brody Burnette allowed a home run leading of the ninth before nailing down his eighth save of the season.
Brady Baltus (5-1) earned the win for Bellevue with two scoreless innings of relief.
Larson (0-1) took the loss for the Comets after allowing Holmes' go-ahead knock in the eighth.
Rob Gurney and Zach Evanochko hit solo homers in the first and ninth, respectively, to account for Mayville State's only runs.
Top Performers
Bellevue University
Kenji Miller – ND 6 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, 9 SO, 2 BB
Dylan Holmes – 2-3, RBI
Jaylan Ruffin – 2-4, triple, run
Oak Held – 2-5, solo home run (2)
Nick Gravel – 1-4, home run (2)
Mayville State University
Garrett Lundmark – ND, 6 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 6 SO, 3 BB
Cam Goff – 2-4
Rob Gurney – 1-4, solo HR (1)
Zach Evanochko – 1-4, solo HR (3)
Inside the Numbers:
- Bellevue has now won 12-straight in the series with Mayville dating back to Apr. 22, 2023. The two teams will meet at least five more times this regular season.
- BU and Mayville State had eight hits and an error apiece on the day.
- The Bellevue bullpen has now posted a 2.41 ERA through their first six games of the spring trip.
Up Next:
Bellevue warps up their spring trip tomorrow at 8 a.m. central (9 a.m. local time) against Trinity College of Jacksonville from Lake Myrtle Field in Auburndale, Fla. in their final game of the RussMatt Invitational.
