The 18th-ranked Belmont Abbey baseball team lost at Anderson by a 5-4 score this evening at Anderson Memorial Stadium. The Crusaders took a 3-1 lead in the top of the fourth, but the Trojans scored the next four runs and held off a late Abbey rally to improve to 18-23. The Crusaders drop to 29-12.

After the Trojans took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first on an RBI double by Erick Sanderson, the Abbey moved ahead 3-1 in the top of the fourth as Kyle Buchanan and Chris Vazquez opened the inning with singles. An Anderson throwing error off the bat of Tim Dye produced two runs, as Buchanan and Vazquez scored on the play. Dye moved all the way to third, and he later scored on a groundout to third by Caleb Shore.

Anderson scored the next four runs of the game, starting with one in the fifth on an RBI double by Brett Scarberry to trim the deficit to 3-2. The Crusaders did not score in the sixth, and Anderson moved back on top in the bottom of the frame, scoring three times, two coming on a single by Scarberry and the other on a single by Blake May.

The Abbey made it a one run game in the seventh. John Cucchiarella led off with a triple to left center and after a strikeout, he scored on a single by Justin Vasquez to slice the Anderson lead to 5-4. Vasquez was left stranded on second as Anderson escaped the jam.

The next nine batters of the game were retired, setting the stage for the Abbey's final chance in the top of the ninth. Roberto Sanchez ripped a one-out single, but he advanced no further, as Vasquez roped a liner right back to the pitcher, who tossed to first to cancel Sanchez and end the game.

Anderson starting pitcher Ben Roberts moved his record to 1-3 in a six and one-thirds innings effort, giving up four runs, one earned, on eight hits. He walked three and struck out two. Patrick Rossi took the loss in his first start of the year. He allowed four runs, three earned, on six hits in five and one-thirds innings. He fanned four and did not walk a batter. His ledger dips to 2-1. Justin Rogers was credited with his first save after scattering two hits over the final two and two-thirds scoreless innings.

The Crusaders finished with ten hits as Sanchez, Buchanan and Shore all finished with two. Shore and Vasquez recorded RBIs.