After a weekend in Buffalo, N.Y., the Ball State University baseball team boarded the bus home with two victories and a trip to Niagara Falls under its belt.
The Cardinals (14-12, 5-2) swept Sunday's doubleheader against the University at Buffalo (10-17, 1-7) with victories of 15-9 and 3-2. The series was scheduled to begin on Friday, but rain delayed the start of the series and forced one game to be cancelled.
When Friday's game was postponed, the team took a trip north to visit Niagara Falls. Saturday the team found an indoor batting facility so they could stay loose.
"We stayed busy," coach Greg Beals said. "We knew we'd play [Sunday] for sure and we wanted to be ready."
The Cardinals' bats were ready in the first game to bail out starting pitcher Brad Piatt, who had his worst start of the season. Piatt lasted 1 1/3 innings, allowing seven runs on eight hits. The outing added 1.8 runs to his ERA.
"It was just one of those days for Brad Piatt," Beals said. "Today was just his bad start."
The damage could have been worse, but freshman Cal Bowling was able to work out of a bases loaded jam when he entered in the second inning. Bowling struck out two Bulls to preserve the Ball State lead.
"Early in the year it was a tough job getting myself out of jams," Bowling said. "But I've gotten more comfortable."
Bowling pitched 4 2/3 innings, allowing three hits and no runs to improve his record to 3-0.
The offense also picked up Piatt. After a six-run first inning for Buffalo, the Cardinals responded with seven runs of their own. They were able to take advantage of a two-out error to extend the inning and score five unearned runs, punctuated by junior right fielder Ryan Chenoweth's three-RBI double.
The bats didn't quit, adding seven more runs throughout the game. Freshman first baseman Ian Nielsen paced the team, going 4-for-5 with three RBIs and three runs. Chenoweth finished 2-of-6, with two doubles and five RBIs. Freshman designated hitter Nathan Koontz added a three-run home run.
Nielsen said the key was not swinging for the fences to start the comeback.
"We were finding a way to get some hits and chip away at the lead," Nielsen said. "It was about getting the barrel of the bat on the ball."
The second game featured each team's best pitcher, which slowed down the slugfest.
Sophomore Kolbrin Vitek pitched four shutout innings before turning the game over to the bullpen, which kept its strong performance going.
Senior Adam Quinn (2-2) earned the win after retiring the side on eight pitches in the fifth inning. Tom Mueller, Aaron Hammons and Morgan Coombs finished the game for the Cardinals.
Coombs allowed one run in the ninth and had the tying run to reach third base, before he retired left fielder Eric Flynn for the final out. The save was Coombs' third of the year.
Nielsen continued to shine at the plate, driving in all three Cardinal runs in the second game. For the day he went 6-for-9 with eight RBIs.
"Anytime I get the opportunity to drive in runs, I want to do that," Nielsen said. "Today I was able to bring my mind up and focus on the task."
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