DAVENPORT, Fla. – On a cloudy morning at the NERP #4 complex, Beloit College (7-5, 0-0 MWC) showcased a combination of dominant starting pitching and opportunistic baserunning to edge out Benedictine University (5-6, 0-0 NACC) in a 3-2 thriller.
Led by a masterful performance on the mound from Bryce Lermer (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) and a three-hit day from Brody Bremer (Mesa, Ariz.), the Buccaneers managed to hold off a late-inning surge by the Eagles to secure the win.
The story for much of the game was Beloit starter Lermer. Lermer was nearly untouchable over 6.0 innings of work, surrendering only four hits and no runs. He kept the Benedictine hitters off-balance all morning, racking up seven strikeouts and yielding zero walks. The win improves Lermer's season record to a perfect 3-0.
Beloit's offense hummed with efficiency, making the most of eight hits and several Benedictine defensive miscues. The Buccaneers broke the scoreless tie in the top of the third inning. After Jacopo "JT" Tamburini (Bologna, Italy) and Seth Brankey (Salem, Wis.) reached on back-to-back errors, Blake Nelson (Monument, CO.) delivered a clutch RBI single to center field, scoring Tamburini to give Beloit a 1-0 lead.
The lead grew in the seventh inning thanks to the speed of Bremer. Bremer sparked the rally with a single to left and immediately pressured the defense by stealing second. He eventually crossed the plate when Tamburini reached first on a dropped third strike (passed ball), extending the lead to 2-0.
After Benedictine cut the lead to 2-1 in the bottom of the seventh, Beloit found a crucial insurance run in the top of the ninth. Once again, it was Bremer providing the spark, hitting a two-out single and stealing his second base of the game. Jack Alport (Arlington Heights, Ill.) then came through with the play of the game, a sharp RBI single to center field that drove Bremer home, making it 3-1.
That insurance run proved to be the difference-maker. Despite Benedictine scoring once in the bottom of the ninth on a pinch-hit single, Beloit reliever Caleb Lasher (Albuquerque, N.M.) remained composed. Lasher induced a line-out to center field to end the game, earning his second save of the season.
The Buccaneers return to Wisconsin and will host Lakeland on Wednesday with games at 2 and 5. Both games will be played at ABC Supply Stadium in downtown Beloit.
