BELMONT, N.C. – The Belmont Abbey baseball team closed out its 2023 regular season and sent off its senior class on a high note by scoring a combined 29 runs over two games to complete a sweep of King Saturday afternoon at Abbey Yard.
 
The Crusaders won a high-scoring 17-10 battle in the opener over the Tornado while finishing the day with a 12-8 victory in Game 2. Five seniors – Patrick Taylor, Scotty Reeves, Grant Lohmeier, David Dobson and Ben Ferguson – were honored prior to the start of Saturday's doubleheader.
 
The Abbey had a strong day at the plate with 12 extra-base hits over the span of both contests.
 
Belmont Abbey closes the regular season on a six-game conference winning streak and finishes the regular season with a 36-14 overall record and a 17-3 mark in Conference Carolinas play. . King saw its season draw to a close with a 15-31 mark and 5-23 record in league play.
 
GAME 1

• The Tornado took an early 2-0 lead by scoring a run in each of the first two innings.
• The Crusaders got on the board with a two-run double by Caleb Burr and took the lead on an RBI single by Todd Velotta.
• King jumped ahead 4-3 with a two-run home run in the third before the Crusaders broke the game open with a nine-run third inning. The nine runs is the most that Belmont Abbey has scored in a single inning this year.
• Belmont Abbey scored four runs on three straight RBI singles and added another in the frame on a sacrifice fly by Velotta.
• Additionally, the Crusaders scored four more runs on a pair of King fielding errors.
• Lohmeier earned the win by pitching 5.1 innings while Dobson made an appearance in relief for The Abbey.
• Belmont Abbey sent 11 batters to the plate in a five-run sixth inning highlighted by two singles from Reeves and a three-run home run from Taylor.
• Connor Tucker led the way offensively by going 5-for-5 in the opener.

 
GAME 2

• The Tornado jumped out to an early lead again in the first inning before the Crusaders scored three runs in the bottom of the inning to take a 3-2 lead.
• Taylor and Ferguson drove in two runs on an RBI double and single, respectively.
• Carter DuHaime hit his 11th home run of the season with a leadoff home run in the third.
• The Tornado pulled even with four runs in the fourth but The Abbey took the lead for good with three runs in the bottom of the inning starting with a sacrifice fly from Browder.
• That was followed by an RBI double from Tucker and Ferguson, who reached on a walk, scored on a wild pitch.
• Belmont Abbey extended its lead in the fifth when Velotta doubled and later scored from second base on a failed pickoff attempt.
• The Tornado got a run in the sixth and eighth innings to cap the scoring while Ferguson hit a two-run home run in his final home at-bat in the seventh.
• Myles Hedgecock and Drew Stegura allowed just two runs in the final 5.1 innings in relief to secure the win.

 
UP NEXT

• Belmont Abbey advances to play in the Conference Carolinas Tournament as the No. 5 seed and will play No. 8 seed Emmanuel at 1 p.m. Wednesday at CaroMont Health Park in Gastonia.
• The Crusaders swept the Lions last weekend in a three-game series.