BELMONT, N.C. — Joe Whitaker drove in seven runs, including a grand slam, as the No. 12 Belmont Abbey baseball team rolled past No. 13 Lenoir-Rhyne for a 21-5 victory Tuesday at Abbey Yard.
Whitaker's team-best 18th home run of the season was part of a 10-run fifth inning that broke the game open that led to a season sweep of the Bears.
Jack Boyles went 3 for 5 and hit his second home run of the year while three other Crusders finished with multiple hits on the day.
Ethan Yarbrough earned his sixth win on the mount after pitching 1.2 innings of relief and striking out a pair of batters.
Belmont Abbey improves to 32-9 overall while Lenoir-Rhyne is 30-9-1.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- After a scoreless first inning, Lenoir-Rhyne got on the board first with a home run in the second inning.
- Belmont Abbey answered with Boyles' two-run home run to make it 2-2.
- L-R scored in the third but Michael Fattore pulled the Abbey even with an RBI single in the third.
- Yarbrough got the Crusaders out of a bases loaded jam in the fourth inning.
- Whitaker put the Crusaders ahead for good with a two-run single in the bottom of the fourth and added two more runs to extend the lead.
- The Bears scored on a groundout in the fifth but the Abbey broke the game open by sending 16 batters to the plate in the frame.
- Jacob Steinberg and Mason Janz each had RBI singles while Janz later scored on a Bears error.
- The Crusaders added three runs in the seventh and one more in the eighth on a RBI single from Boyles.
- Bailey Faircloth and Caleb Crain pitched scoreless frames in relief in the seventh and ninth innings, respectively, to close out the game.
- It is the fifth time this season that the Crusaders have scored 20 or more runs in a game this season.
UP NEXT
Belmont Abbey hosts its final Conference Carolinas series of the season starting Friday against Young Harris.
The series opener is scheduled for a 5 p.m. start from Abbey Yard.
