DANVILLE, Ky. – The Berea College baseball team dropped a close match on Tuesday evening as they fell 8-7 to Centre College.
Freshman
Nick McLaughlin had a great showing for the Mountaineers with two hits and three RBIs in the contest. Freshman
Michael Vazquez recorded a pair of hits for extra bases, a double and a triple, along with two RBIs. Freshmen
Justin Brown and
Marcelo Manrique each recorded an RBI for Berea, as well.
The Mountaineers took the advantage early by scoring a run in each of the first two innings. Manrique opened the scoring in the first inning with an RBI double to left field, while Brown notched an RBI double of his own in the second inning to give Berea a 2-0 lead over the Colonels.
Centre put its first run on the board in the bottom of the third as a runner scored on a balk. McLaughlin gave Berea another run as he was called out on a fielder's choice, but it was enough to bring freshman
Daniel Nieto across home plate as the Mountaineers pushed the lead 3-1.
The Colonels tied the contest in the bottom of the fourth on a two-run home run to left field and eventually took a one-run lead in the fifth. McLaughlin drew the match even in the top of the sixth inning with his second RBI of the evening on a single to center field.
Momentum shifted in the bottom of the sixth inning as the Colonels spotted four runs to take an 8-4 lead. After the big inning by the opposition, Berea didn't back down as they drew the contest within one run in the eighth inning. McLaughlin once again came through for the Mountaineers as he drove the ball to left field for an RBI single to cut the deficit to three runs.
With two runners on base, Vazquez hammered the ball to right field on a two-RBI triple to apply pressure to Centre as Berea trailed 8-7 at the end of the eighth inning. Even though the Mountaineers battled hard there weren't enough outs left for the visitors as Berea fell 8-7.
The Berea College baseball team has a quick turnaround as they host Asbury University tomorrow. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. at the Berea College Sports Complex.
