April 10, 2010
By: Brandy Bidlack, sports information assistant
BLUFFTON, Ohio - The Bluffton University baseball team fell to Transylvania as the Pioneers swept the Beavers 19-10 and 12-6 on Saturday, April 10, 2010. With the wins, Transy improved to 16-10 overall and 6-6 in the Heartland Conference. Bluffton fell to 1-9 in the conference and 10-16 on the season.
Transylvania 19, Bluffton 10
In the bottom of the first, Kyle Niermann (Napoleon) singled through the right side and advanced to second when Bluffton catcher Stephen Torres (Lima/Juan Diego) was hit by a pitch. Nick Broyles (Toledo/Whitmer) homered to left center to give Bluffton the early 3-0 lead.
In the top of the third inning, the Pioneers took advantage of a Bluffton error and another bobble to push five runs across the plate. The Beavers returned the favor, capitalizing on two Transy errors to send both Broyles and Brennan Bauman (Milford) across the plate while tying the score at five.
The Pioneer offense exploded in the fifth, starting with a two-run homer. After a pair of doubles and a pitching change, an Evan Rhea grand slam and a total of nine hits in the inning amounted to a 10-run swing which put the visitors up by a commanding 15-5 count. The Beavers added two and three runs in the next two innings but a four-spot in the seventh gave Transy the 19-10 victory in Saturday's lidlifter.
Both Broyles and Tyler Stephenson (Springfield/Northwestern) went 3-of-4 at the plate. Broyles scored four times and drove in four runs with his two home runs in the first game. Stephenson and Torres both scored two runs. Nick Rodesky (Bowling Green) fell to 1-3 on the season after giving up nine runs on 11 hits in four innings on the mound.
Transylvania 12, Bluffton 6
Nick Broyles scored following a Tyler Stephenson RBI base hit in the first inning of game two. After two Pioneer runs in the second, Brennan Bauman singled up the middle and crossed the plate thanks to a single by freshman Ian Land (Troy, Mich./Athens). In the bottom of the third, Broyles drove a Mitch Florence offering over the right field wall, plating Torres and giving the home team a 4-2 lead with his third long ball of the afternoon.
Transylvania added three runs to the scoreboard in the top of the fifth, but Bluffton knotted the contest at six in the seventh when a Greg Bergstedt (Napoleon/Patrick Henry) double sent Bauman racing home.
However, the visitors produced three runs each in both the eighth and ninth innings to give them the Saturday sweep and series victory over Bluffton. With the 12-6 win, Transy improved to .500 in the HCAC (6-6) and 16-10 overall.
Nick Broyles, Brennan Bauman, Tyler Stephenson and Bergstedt all rapped two hits apiece in the second game, while Broyles had two RBI and scored two runs. Bauman crossed the plate twice. Sophomore starter Ryan Leugers (Botkins) struck out two batters and walked three in 4.1 innings of work. Cody McPherson (Northwood/Millbury Lake) fell to 3-5 with the loss.
Bluffton returns to Heartland Conference action with a nine-inning game at Manchester College on Tuesday, April 13, 2010. The contest between the Beavers and the Spartans is slated to start at 4:15 p.m. in North Manchester, Indiana.
-BEAVERS-