March 12, 2003
Bowling Green, Ky. - The Western Kentucky baseball team scored the game's first run, but gave up four answered runs to fall 4-1 to the Belmont Bruins at Nick Denes Field Wednesday afternoon.
The Hilltoppers (7-6) got on the board in the second when Antone Towns (So., Louisville, Ky.) led off with a single. The Bruins (7-3) tried to pick Towns off at first but he broke for second on the throw to first by Ryan Herzberg. First baseman Dan Soukup tried to get Towns at second but hit the Hilltopper in the helmet allowing him to go to third. Towns scored as freshman Tim Grogan (Villa Hills, Ky.) doubled to left.
After the first, it was all Bruins offensively, as Western managed three hits the rest of the way off the trio of Herzberg, Justin Jordan (1-1) and Will Tucker.
Belmont tied the game in the third with the first of two runs off Western starter Andy Baldwin (Jr., Campellsville, Ky.). Baldwin, who allowed seven hits in six innings, walked Josh Radke with one out to start the inning. Radke then picked up Belmont's first of five steals by swiping second. He would score on Ryan Pettit's sacrifice fly to left.
The Bruins took the lead in the top of the sixth with a second run off Baldwin (1-3). Clay Peterson drew a one-out walk and went to second on a sacrifice by Steve Sundstrom. With two outs, Radke roped a double scoring Peterson for a 2-1 lead.
After Western failed to capitalize on a two-out double by David Lower (Sr., Anderson, Ind.) in the eighth, Belmont roughed Matt Wilhite (Sr., Franklin, Ky.) in the top of ninth for two runs. Wilhite gave up a single to Ryan Pettit to start the inning. Pettit stole second, but was thrown out at home by Lower trying to score on a single by Soukup, who was 3-for-4. Josh Brummett restarted the visitors' offense with a triple to drive in Soukup and then scored on a base hit by Peterson.
Belmont finished with 12 hits to Western's five.
The Hilltoppers tried to rally in the ninth when Towns led off with a single, but was not able to take advantage of the hit.
Matt Johnston (Jr., Clarkson, Ky.) singled in the third to stretch his hitting streak to 12 games. Travis Brown (Sr., Kankakee, Ill.) walked in the second and has now reached safely for 12 straight games. Western, which has lost two in a row for just the second time this season, looks to get back on the winning track this weekend when its hosts Michigan State in a three-game series. The two teams will play a doubleheader on Saturday at noon (CST) and a single game at 1 p.m. Sunday.
