BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Senior Brett Bolger had two hits and drove in three runs but Western Kentucky pounded out 14 hits on its way to a 9-5 victory over the Eastern Kentucky baseball team Wednesday night at Nick Denes Field. The Colonels drop to 13-12 with the loss while the Hilltoppers improve to 14-10.
Western pushed across an unearned run in the first and then struck for four runs in the second highlighted by a two-run double from designated hitter Casey Hamilton.
The Colonels answered with two runs of their own in the third. Sophomore Frank Krailler began the inning with a single, stole second and then moved to third on the errant throw from catcher Jordan Newton. Freshman Aaron Barrows then walked, bringing up Bolger who drove Krailler home on an RBI groundout. Junior Charlie Yarbrough reached on a hit by pitch and junior Tony Wells then brought home the second Eastern run with a RBI single.
Western pushed the lead to 6-2 with a run in the fourth but Eastern cut the lead back to three in the fifth on a Bolger RBI double.
The score stayed that way until the bottom of the eighth. Western centerfielder Corteze Armstrong doubled to start the inning and came home a batter later on a Scott Colt triple. Newton then drove an RBI single through the middle for the second run of the inning.
Eastern reliever Michael Mulholland almost got out of the jam, inducing Hamilton to hit into a 4-6-3 double play but Dennis Winn singled to keep the inning alive, moved to second on a walk to Jack Ambrose and then came home on an Eric Scriven RBI single.
Those insurance runs would prove important as EKU put on its first four batters on in the ninth, scoring a run on an RBI single from sophomore Joe Oliver. But with runners on second third and none out, Western reliever Adam Balcom retired Barrows, Bolger and Yarbrough in order to end the game and give Western its fourth straight victory over the Colonels.
Eastern returns to OVC play this weekend, traveling to face UT Martin for three games. The series begins with a doubleheader Saturday at 2 p.m.
