Box Score Game 1    Box Score Game 2
NEW ORLEANS, La. – The Belhaven baseball team completed a three game Southern States Athletic Conference sweep at Loyola University (NO) Saturday afternoon at Segnette Field. The Blazers took home the win in game one 4-0 and held on for a 7-5 victory in game two. The sweep proved to be big in the SSAC standings, jumping Belhaven from the bottom of the league to a tie for seventh in the standings.
 
Game One
Belhaven (16-11, 4-5 SSAC) took advantage of some costly errors by Loyola in game one en route to the win. Neither starting pitcher gave an inch until the top of the sixth when the Blazers grabbed a 1-0 lead.
 
Loyola (6-20, 2-10 SSAC) threatened in the first inning when shortstop Brandon Snow singled followed by a double from right fielder Karson Cullins, putting runners at second and third with two away. However, Chris Good buckled down to get second baseman Britt Pellegrin on a ground out to third to end the inning.
 
In the top of the sixth, left fielder Emilio DeSilva reached on an error by Snow to lead off the inning and it would come back to haunt the Wolfpack. Third baseman Jason Hicks singled to move DeSilva to third and then catcher Kyle Wheeler brought in the run on a sacrifice fly to right field.
 
Leading 1-0 going into the top of the seventh, Belhaven took advantage of two more errors to add three insurance runs. Pinch hitter Majer Entabi and shortstop Josiah Richard both reached base on Loyola miscues. Centerfielder Reagan Rutledge plated the first run on a squeeze bunt and thanks to the extra outs; Dominick Francia came through with a two out two run single driving in Richard and Rutledge to make it a 4-0 game. Good did the rest by holding the Wolfpack off the board in the bottom of the seventh for the win.
 
Good notched his second win of the week and seventh of the season by pitching a seven inning complete game. Good allowed five hits, walked two, and struck out four leading to a 7-2 record for the season.
 
Francia had one of the three Belhaven hits and two runs batted in while Richard and Hicks each checked in with a base hit. Rutledge and Wheeler both had runs batted in on sacrifice plays. The Blazers combined to swipe seven bases with Francia boasting two of them.
 
Kevin Lindsey went the distance for Loyola and suffered the loss dropping his record to 2-4. Lindsey allowed four unearned runs on three hits with two walks and two strikeouts. Cullins paced the Wolfpack at the plate with two of the team's five hits.
 
Game Two
Belhaven had to hold off a late charge by the Wolfpack in game three of the series to pick up the sweep. The Blazers led 7-2 going into the bottom of the eighth only to see Loyola score three times in the last two innings to make things interesting. In fact, the Wolfpack brought the winning run to the plate in the ninth before Robert Marzoni shutdown the rally.
 
Loyola jumped on Belhaven starter Jonathan Thompson for a run in the bottom of the first inning. Centerfielder Philip Cazayoux doubled to left center and Snow followed suit to plate Cazayoux with a two bagger. Thompson then retired the next three hitters to avoid further damage.
 
The Blazers took the lead in the top of the third on key hits by Hicks and Wheeler. Hicks singled on a 0-2 pitch plating Rutledge and Richard to make it 2-1 and then with two outs Wheeler cashed in pinch runner Joshua Bouldin on a two strike single pushing the score to 3-1.
 
In the fourth, Francia blasted a leadoff double and crossed the plate on another squeeze bunt, this time from Richard to make it 4-1. Then in the fifth, second baseman Ryne Cook continued the trend of clutch hitting with a two out two run single to right.
 
The Blazers bats went silent again until the eighth when Britt slammed his third home run of the season over the wall in left to open the inning and extend the lead to 7-2. Loyola countered in the home half of the eighth on a Cullins double followed by a two out RBI single by catcher Bradley Brunet trimming the score to 7-3.
 
The Wolfpack made things too close for comfort in the ninth when they loaded the bases with one out against relief pitcher Austin McCann. Marzoni was called in to stop the rally and preserve the win. Cullins greeted Marzoni with an RBI single and then a sac fly by DH Camelo LoSauro cut the lead to 7-5.With two outs, first baseman Evan Turkish hit a line drive off the shoulder of Marzoni that deflected to Cook at second who threw out Turkish at first base to end the game.
 
Wheeler had three hits and one run batted in to lead the offensive attack for Belhaven in game two of the doubleheader. Francia followed with two doubles while Hicks and Cook had one hit and two RBI. Richard rounded out the stat sheet with a single and one run batted in.
 
Thompson turned in another solid outing on the hill by firing 6.2 innings for the win. Thompson (1-1) allowed two runs on six hits with three walks and four strikeouts. Marzoni collected his sixth save of the season by tossing 0.2 innings to close the game.
 
Loyola outhit Belhaven 11-9 with Brunet pounding out a team high three hits with an RBI in game two. Snow and Cullins had two hits and one RBI apiece for the Wolfpack. Daniel Posway gave up six runs and took the loss on the mound. Posway allowed seven hits in 4.2 innings as he falls to 2-3 in 2013.
 
Belhaven will be back in action on Tuesday as the team travels to McKenzie, TN to take on Bethel at 2:00 PM.