BELMONT, N.C. — The Belmont Abbey baseball team opened up its three-game Conference Carolinas series against Francis Marion Friday at Abbey Yard. Carter DuHaime hit his first home run of the season and drove in three runs but it was the Patriots who defeated the Abbey, 15-9.

Todd Velotta finished with three hits on the while Joe Whitaker and Matthew Fattore each had two hits for the Crusaders.

With Friday's results, Belmont Abbey is now 15-9 overall and Francis Marion is 18-7 overall. Both teams are 8-5 in league play.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Crusaders were able to work out of a bases-loaded jam in the first inning after the Patriots hit into a double play to end the inning.
• Fattore had the first hit of the game in the bottom of the first inning for Belmont Abbey.
• The Patriots broke through with a six-run fourth inning that saw 11 batters come to the plate.
• The Crusaders took advantage of Francis Marion miscues in the fourth, scoring two runs off of wild pitches and one on a throwing error off a stolen base.
• FMU broke the game open with a seven-run fourth inning.
• Belmont Abbey added three more runs in the seventh thanks to a two-run home run from DuHaime and an RBI double from Fattore.
• Francis Marion added runs in the seventh and eighth innings off of a balk and a bases-loaded walks.
• The Crusaders capped the scoring with two runs off of sacrifice flies in the eighth and ninth innings from Jake Bidoglio and DuHaime.
• The other run came from Jackson Risk, who scored on a wild pitch in the ninth.
• Ethan Yarbrough pitched a scoreless ninth inning in his first appearance of the season for the Crusaders.
• The Crusaders had 11 hits on the evening.

 
UP NEXT

• The series concludes with a doubleheader starting at noon Saturday at Abbey Yard.