Feb. 21, 2004

Final Stats

NASHVILLE - Saint Louis University baseball lost both games of its season-opening doubleheader at Belmont this afternoon. The Bruins (5-0) earned a 4-1 victory in game one and went on to a 13-6 win in the second half of the twinbill. For the Billikens (0-2), senior Aaron Thompson led the offense with three hits over two games.

In game one, senior starter Dave Guntorius got off to a good start, allowing just two hits in the first three innings. The Billiken offense, however, was just as stagnant as Belmont's. The Bruins broke open the game in the bottom of the fourth when a pair of singles and a double drove in two runs. A sacrifice plated a third run in the innings to give Belmont a 4-0 margin. SLU got a run back in the top of the fifth as Thompson led off with a single and moved to third on an error. Senior Drew Eder picked up the RBI, but pitcher Justin Jordan closed the door for the 4-1 final score.

Belmont got things going early in game two, plating six runs in the bottom of the second to chase Billiken starter Joe Buehler in favor of freshman right-hander Ryan Bird. The Bruins opened a 7-0 lead before the Billikens got on the board in the top of the fourth.

Again it was Thompson leading off a key inning with a walk. After stealing second, he moved to third on a passed ball and crossed the plate on sophomore Johnny Sweeney's single to center. Freshman Mark Hankes drove a double to left center to plate both Sweeney and Pat Steinhoff, who drew a walk ahead of Sweeney's single. The offensive surge drove Belmont starter Charles Lee from the mound, and Ryan Herzberg came on to retire the next three batters.

Saint Louis further cut the lead with three runs in the top of the fifth. Singles from freshman Bill Musselman, Thompson and Steinhoff set the table for Sweeney's two-run double to left center. Hankes picked up his third RBI of the game on a sacrifice fly to narrow the deficit to 7-6 before the Bruins could get out of the inning.

Belmont wasted no time in opening up a significant margin against freshman reliever Patrick Barmann in the bottom of the fifth. The Billken right-hander struggled in his first college appearance with a pair of walks, a single and a balk opened the flood gates for the Bruins. A double and a home run brought sophomore left-hander Tim Landy to the mound for SLU. After retiring the first batter he faced, Landy saw another shot clear the fence before he wrapped up the inning. The Bruins cruised through the final two innings for the 13-6 victory.

The Billikens host their first game of the season on Wed., Feb. 25, at 2 p.m. against Indiana State at The Billiken Sports Center.