MCKENZIE, Tenn. – The Belhaven baseball team finished off their first Southern States Athletic Conference series sweep of the year on Monday, defeating Bethel University 9-8. The Blazers also claimed both games of a Sunday doubleheader, winning Game One 4-2 before taking the nightcap 8-4.
 
"Every win in our league is huge, so it was nice to come in and pick up three big ones this weekend," Head Coach Hill Denson said. "We are hoping this can become a trend for our team as we move into the more difficult portion of our conference schedule."
 
Ben Allison (4-2) picked up the win in the series opener, scattering eight hits over 5.2 innings. The right hander allowed one earned run while issuing just one walk and striking out two. David Hill and Zach Osha combined for the final 1.1 inning, with the latter recording his fourth save of the season.
 
Offensively, Reagan Rutledge sparked three base hits, including the first home run of his senior campaign. Paul Pickerrell added three singles and the team's only stolen base en route to the first win of the series.
 
Wildcat starter Garrett Perry (1-1) went all seven innings, allowing four runs on 11 Belhaven hits. The right hander struck out three Blazers and did not issue a walk, but the performance wasn't enough to prevent his first loss of the year.
 
In the nightcap, Pickerrell added two more hits as one of five Blazers with at least that many. Rutledge finished a long ball shy of the cycle, while Adam Kowalczyk's sixth home run allowed him to drive in three runs.
 
Belhaven right hander Chase Davidson (3-0) went five strong innings on the mound, surrendering just one earned run and fanning eight before turning things over to the bullpen. Chris Good, Jim Tom Copeland, David Hill, and Tanner Moulder each hurled an inning in relief and combined for just one unearned run and four strikeouts.
 
Bethel starting pitcher Blake Chandler (1-1) took the loss after giving up five runs in three innings, and the bullpen provided little relief. The Blazers tagged Wildcat pitching for 14 hits in Game Two to total 25 in Sunday's 16 innings.
 
On Monday, Bethel got out to a two-run lead in the second inning, but the game proved to be back-and-forth for all nine. Belhaven's biggest inning of the day came with a five-run sixth, but the Wildcats regained the lead with a four-run bottom half. The Blazers ultimately tallied 13 hits to finish the series with 38 and pick up their first conference sweep this season.
 
Individually, Pickerrell gave Belhaven another three hits, becoming the ninth Blazer of the year to hit a home run along the way. Hunter Sutton added three singles, and Pickerrell combined with Emilio DeSilva and Gabe Wilson to drive in seven of the team's nine runs.
 
Will Cockrell and Tanner Moulder were the first two to pitch for Belhaven, but it ended up being Good (2-1) collecting the win in relief. Copeland and Hill pitched flawless seventh and eighth innings respectively, paving the way for Osha to tally his second save of the series.
 
John Woodard walked five and gave up nine hits, but it was Isaac Carr (0-1) taking the loss after the Blazers took the lead for good in the seventh. The Wildcats dropped to 4-11 overall, including a 3-5 mark in the Southern States Athletic Conference.
 
The Blazers won a conference series for the third time this year, improving to 19-11 with the three-game sweep. Belhaven now stands at 8-7 in league play and looks to continue the hot streak in a period that features eight games in seven days.
 
Belhaven is set to return to action on Tuesday, when they host LSU-Alexandria at Smith-Wills Stadium in non-conference play. First pitch is slated for 4:00 pm.