Playing in near-freezing conditions, touring Bellarmine University (Ky.) and Lee's baseball team split a doubleheader at Olympic Field on Wednesday afternoon. The Flames claimed the opening seven-inning contest, 8-3 and the Knights battled back to win the seven-inning nightcap 4-0.
 
Game 1, Lee 8, Bellarmine 3
Wes Albert hurled six innings of solid baseball while Spencer Mossburg and Peyton Meeker supplied the majority of the bat power in the first-game win over the visiting Knights.
 
The Flames gave Albert (2-2) all the support the right-hander needed with three runs in the bottom of the third inning. Nate Wierzgac started the rally with a single and Meeker reached on a fielder's choice. Mossburg's fourth homer of the season plated Wierzgac and Meeker.

Lee went back to work to grab a 6-0 lead in the fifth. Miguel Pimentel was hit by a pitch. Meeker singled and Pimentel walked home on a balk by the Knight pitcher. Jeffrey Chapuran put down a bunt to score Meeker and Dalton Ney's one-base knock scored Mossburg.

Lee added two more runs in the sixth. Meeker's two-run double pushed Pimentel, who was hit by a pitch for the second time, and Geremy Walton across home plate as the margin grew to 8-1.

The Knights scored a solo run in the sixth. Alex Ralph reached on an error and Zac Wiley's sinking line drive to center turned into a triple, scoring Ralph. Aided by a pair of errors by the Flames, Bellarmine added two more runs in the seventh. Drew Greenwood had the only hit in the frame. Ralph added a double to the losing cause.

Meeker finished the seven-inning contest with a double, single, two RBI and two runs scored. Mossburg drove home three runs with his dinger and scored twice. All totaled the Flames finished with seven hits.

Albert allowed five hits over six innings. He did not give up an earned run, striking out seven and walking three. Michael Ray surrendered one hit and one run in pitching the seventh inning. Duncan Amrein was the losing Bellarmine pitcher. He hurled 4.1 innings and gave up six earned runs. Ryan Henson worked the final 1.2 innings.

Game 2, Bellarmine 4, Lee 0
The Knights rode the four-hit pitching of Alex Phillips (2-0) to the win in the second game. He struck out eight and walked only two over seven innings. Christian Bokich (0-1) was tagged with the Lee loss. He hurled 5.2 innings, allowing six hits, four earned runs, striking out six and walking one. John Reese Gilmer came on to hurl the final 1.1 innings of hitless ball. He struck out two.
 
The Knights went to work in the top of the first inning and plated two big runs. Greenwood and Griffin Neuer singled. Josh Finety was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Ralph picked up a RBI with a fly-out to right and Wiley singled home the second run of the inning.
 
Bellarmine tacked on insurance runs in the fifth and sixth innings. Tyler Neely blasted a homer in the fifth and Finety ripped a four-bagger that climaxed the night's scoring and gave winning pitcher Phillips all the help he needed.
 
The Flames were limited to four singles in the loss. Walton, Wierzgac, Drew Johnson and Brayden Ware collected the hits.
 
"I thought the pitchers gave us exactly what we needed today," remarked head coach Mark Brew after the twin bill split.  "Wes (Albert) and Christian (Bokich) did an excellent job pitching us deep into games, allowing our bullpen to rest. They have logged lots of innings this year.

"Offensively, we did a good job creating big innings through timely hitting in game one but didn't make enough adjustments in game two to be successful," the coach added.
 
Lee, 16-8 overall and 6-6 in Gulf South Conference play, will return to conference action, hosting Shorter University in a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m. A single nine-inning game will follow on Sunday scheduled for a 1 p.m. first pitch.
 
"Shorter (14-8 overall, 5-7 GSC) will bring a much improved team to Olympic Field this weekend," pointed out coach Brew. "It's a special Saturday and Sunday as we host Parents Weekend, and we should have a great crowd for this rivalry series."