Feb. 18, 2001
Box Score
Nashville, Tenn. - The UIC baseball team split a pair of outings with the Belmont Bruins Sunday afternoon as it came up just short in game one, 6-5, before avoiding the series sweep with a 5-2 victory in the nightcap.
The Flames (2-5) took a quick one-run lead in the top of the first in game one as singles by J.P. Moran (Burlington, Wis./Westosha Central) and Bob Rosinski (Wilmette, Ill./New Trier) sparked UIC.
Belmont responded with a solo score of its own in the bottom half of the frame and then took the lead, 3-1, in the second inning with two more runs as it roughed up Flames' starter Wes Gilliam (South Holland, Ill./Thornwood) for a pair of hits while an error at short was also costly for UIC.
The Flames put one run on the board in the top of the third, but the Bruins responded with two more tallies in the bottom of the third to up their lead to 5-2.
UIC put on its rally caps in the fifth, however, to knot the game at 5-5. Weber Bowen (Minneapolis, Minn./Blake School) drew a walk to start the rally and then Rosinski and Chris Kerpan (Waukegan, Ill./Waukegan) both picked up singles. Curtis Granderson (Lynwood, Ill./Thornton Fractional South) provided the big hit of the inning with his second triple of the year to score a pair.
Belmont, however, delivered the knock out punch in the bottom of the sixth and pegged rookie Brendan Aubin (Orland Park, Ill./Sandburg), who tossed three and two-thirds innings and gave up a pair of runs, with his first loss of the year as it plated the game-winning run with two outs.
UIC left the bases loaded in the top of the seventh to fall just short in game one, 6-5.
In the nightcap, the Flames got a strong performance from starting pitcher Kevin Ryan (Elmhurst, Ill./York), who was making his first appearance of the year, en route to a 5-2 UIC victory.
Belmont took a 1-0 lead in the third on an unearned run, but Ryan then kept the Bruins' bats quiet.
The Flames, meanwhile, tied the game at 1-1 in the fourth and then took the lead for good, 4-1, in the fifth with three runs. An error at short extended the inning long enough for UIC to plate the trio of runs as Kerpan and Andy Marin (Aurora, Ill./Waubonsie Valley) both singled and a walk to Granderson keyed the rally.
Moran's sacrifice fly in the top of the sixth scored John Rosner (Ottawa, Ill./Marquette), who reached on a walk and moved over to third on a pair of wild pitches, to round out the Flames' scoring.
Ryan, who earned the win, tossed six complete innings and gave up just two hits and one unearned run while fanning a pair.
UIC will head back to Nashville next weekend for a three-game series at Tennessee Tech starting Friday afternoon at 2:00 p.m.
