Bellevue College’s season opening weekend gave them a taste of how tough the conference will be this year, pulling out two come-from-behind victories against perennial powerhouse Lower Columbia before dropping two to Lane CC, a veteran club projected to be one of the top teams in the South region.
On Friday March 1, Bellevue was hosted by Lower Columbia, the team who knocked the Bulldogs out of the NWAACC Championships last May. It was the fourth consecutive year these two programs have battled over the season opening weekend. Freshman Jordan Silva’s big two-run single put Bellevue on top in the 6th inning, driving in Nick Lombardi and Kurt Lindemann for the go-ahead runs. Jordan Richartz, who was 6-for-12 over the weekend, had one of his four doubles in the ninth, tacking on an insurance run to seal the season-opening win. Jake Reppert and Brandon Mahovlich were stellar in their debuts on the mound, combining for 11 strikeouts and only one walk. In game two, Bellevue battled back twice in the 8th and 10th innings to earn the extra-inning win 3-2 to sweep the Red Devils on their home field. In the 8th, Max Brown came off the bench with a pinch hit single to drive in Bellevue’s first run. He later scored to give Bellevue the lead on another double by Richartz. Defensive miscues allowed Bellevue Trai Patrick to score on a passed ball in the 10th to give Bellevue the win. Nick Kiel made his debut in relief, yielding only two hits over five innings of work.
On Saturday March 2, Bellevue struggled at both ends, offensively only generating only two runs over 18 innings while allowing 19 runs and 24 hits to Lane in a pair of losses by scores of 11-1, and 8-1. Ryan Malone went 2-for-4 in the first game while Brown continued his hot hitting from Friday’s nightcap with a 2-for-4 performance as well.
Bellevue travels south to play Centralia College for a four-game series at Borst Park this weekend.Doubleheader start times for both days is slated for 12pm. Check the baseball webpage for updates to possible field and time changes due to weather.
Last Updated October 25, 2013
