Belmont baseball fell to the UIC Flames 2-1 in a three-game series on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
The series kicked off on Friday at E.S. Rose Park with early command by the Flames.
In the first inning, Belmont sophomore pitcher Will Pryor walked four straight batters, giving the Flames a 1-0 lead.
UIC extended their lead in the second inning with a trio of singles when AJ Henkle knocked in a run, bringing the score to 2-0.
The Bruins didn’t get on the scoreboard until the bottom of the fifth.
To kick it off, freshman Pete Daniel singled.
Followed by a double from senior Sam Slaughter, Daniel ran home to score the first run for Belmont.
Graduate player Brody Heaton then doubled and sent both Slaughter and senior Jack Rando home, bringing the score to 3-2 heading into the sixth.
The Bruins scored three more runs in the bottom of the seventh.
A single from Rando brought Daniel home after he put himself on base with a double.
Senior Mason Landers followed that up with a two-run home run, giving Belmont the 6-2 lead going into the eighth.
In the eighth inning, UIC answered with four more runs, tying the game 6-6.
Later in the ninth, UIC extended their lead to 8-6, and the Bruins couldn’t rally.
The next day, Belmont regrouped and earned their first win over UIC in program history.
UIC scored their only three runs in the second inning, leading Belmont until the fifth inning.
The Bruins responded with two runs in the fourth inning after only three hits.
Landers doubled followed by a single from Rando that sent Landers home. Senior Max Jones hit another single, scoring Rando.
Belmont extended the lead with two more runs in the fifth.
After singles from senior Max Blessinger and Slaughter, junior Landon Godsey hit a sacrifice bunt that put both Blessinger and Slaughter in scoring position.
A sacrifice fly from Landers earned Belmont another run, tying up the game.
Heaton hit a double that sent the next runner home, giving Belmont the lead, 4-3.
The Flames couldn’t score in the next couple of innings and the Bruins took home the win.
Unfortunately, Belmont couldn’t hold on and lost the third and final game.
UIC took an early lead with one run in the first inning.
Belmont couldn’t equalize. The Flames extended their lead in the third inning with a two-run home run from Henkle.
In the third inning, a single from Landers sent Daniel home, bringing the score to 3-1 with UIC still leading.
The Flames couldn’t score in the fourth inning but held the Bruins to just one more run in the bottom of the fourth.
The sixth inning saw another UIC run, extending the lead to 4-2.
The Bruins quickly responded, bringing the score 4-3 with one run in the seventh.
Belmont’s hopes dwindled in the eighth after a solo home run from UIC’s Rayth Peterson and two more runs after that, bringing UIC to a 7-3 lead.
A ground ball from Heaton in the bottom of the ninth brought Slaughter home, but it wasn’t enough and UIC took home the 7-4 win.
The team looks to Tuesday when it plays nationally-ranked Alabama.
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This article was written by Abby Thomas