NORFOLK, Va. -- Old Dominion baseball opened Conference USA play with a sweep of Western Kentucky on the Friday double header at the Bud Metheny Baseball Complex. The Monarchs improved to 15-4 and 2-0 in C-USA, while the Hilltoppers fell to 11-6 and 0-2 in league action.
In game one, the Baseball Monarchs defeated the Tops, 8-3, scoring in four innings. Connor Myers went 4-for-5 with three RBIs, while Justin Hayes finished 3-for-4 with one RBI and three runs.
ODU put up three runs in the bottom of the second inning to take the early lead. With Nick Lustrino on first, Grey Finwood singled to right field to put Lustrino in scoring position. Hayes followed with a single down the left side to score Lustrino. Myers blasted one up the left side to score Finwood, while Hayes reached home on an error by the leftfielder.
WKU would score one run in the four and two in the fifth, but the Monarchs matched the Hilltoppers scoring to hold a 6-3 advantage with four innings to play. The ODU defense would hold Western Kentucky to just three hits and no runs the rest of the way, while putting two more runs up in the eighth to secure the 8-3 victory.
Sam Sinnen earned the win for ODU in game one, pitching 5.0 innings with six strikeouts. Austin King suffered the loss after going 4.1 innings with six runs on nine hits.
In a much closer game two, the Monarchs downed WKU, 4-2. Both teams scored their only runs in the third inning. WKU got two runs on the board after Grant Malott doubled through the left side and then moved to third on a Zach Janes bunt. Steven Kraft grounded out to second base, but scored Malott in the process and moved Janes to second. Danny Hudzina then followed with a double to left field to score Janes, giving WKU the 2-0 lead. Kaleb Duckworth gave the Hilltoppers runners on first and third with just one out after he singled up the middle. After striking out the next batter, Adam Bainbridge walked Paul Murray, loading the bases. He then ended the WKU threat by forcing a fouled pop up to Kurt Sinnen who easily fielded the ball to shut the door on the Tops.
In the bottom of the third, the Monarchs answered the WKU momentum with four runs of their own. Turner Bishop led off with a single through the left side, which was followed by a Hayes walk. Myers loaded the bases with a bunt, opening the door for Zach Rutherford. With no outs, Rutherford cracked his first triple of the year, bringing home all three runners. Nick Walker had a hand in the last run for ODU, as he registered a sacrifice fly to centerfield to score Rutherford.
Rutherford finished the game 1-for-3 with three RBIs, while Hayes went 1-for-2 with a run scored. Grayson Bailey earned the win after pitching the fifth inning and fanning one. Nick Hartman also picked up his fourth save of the year after pitching the ninth inning and closing the game with two strikeouts.
The Baseball Monarchs are back in action tomorrow at 12 p.m. for game three of the series against WKU at the Bud Metheny Baseball Complex. The game will be streamed live on odusports.com and live stats will be available once the contest begins.