KOKOMO, Ind. – The Mount Vernon Nazarene University baseball team (7-6, 3-1) finished its series against Bethel University (7-13, 1-3) with a pair of victories at Championship Park in Kokomo, Ind., on March 5.
The first game was a 5-2 victory for Mount Vernon Nazarene. Bethel struck first, taking a 1-0 lead in the second inning. A big top of the fourth for MVNU put it on top for good.
Jake Glover launched a two-run homer over the right-field fence. Clay Cottle followed up the home run with an RBI single, giving MVNU the 3-1 lead.
MVNU tacked on two more runs in the sixth. A Casey Kalman RBI double off the fence scored Glover from second. Devin Pearl followed that up with an RBI double of his own, scoring Kalman.
Holding a 5-2 lead in the bottom of the ninth, Cruz McFadden came into the game to close. McFadden did just that as he retired the side to get the save.
Freshman Jarin Bertke got the win on the mound for MVNU. Bertke pitched six-innings, striking out four. He allowed six hits and two runs.
The second game ended in a 5-3 Cougar win. Like the first game, Bethel struck first. The Pilots put two runs on the board in the first inning.
Andrew Miller provided the first MVNU run on an RBI single that scored Zak Hoop in the top of the third. Bethel responded with a run to make the score 3-1 after three.
After getting a run in the fifth via error, MVNU added the go-ahead runs in the seventh. Miller hit a two-run double that scored Cottle and Toby Walker. Glover then hit a single to score Miller, giving MVNU the 5-3 lead.
McFadden once again got the save as he retired all three Pilots that he faced.
Glover got the win on the mound. Glover pitched six innings, allowing three runs. He struck out one and allowed five hits.
MVNU will head to Indianapolis on March 11-12 for a four-game series at Marian University.
