MIAMI -- Sundays continue to be sweet for Old Dominion, as the Monarchs defeated FIU, 4-3, in the series finale on Sunday afternoon at Infinity Insurance Park in Miami.
For the fifth straight weekend, Old Dominion (9-13, 2-4 C-USA) was able to overcome losses in the first two games of a series to win a game three.
"I'm really proud of our young pitchers. We threw a bunch of freshmen today and they all did a really good job," said head coach Chris Finwood. "We did just enough offensively to scrap by and beat them by one."
Of the six pitchers who threw for the Monarchs, four were true freshmen. Jason Hartline (3.1 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 K) looked sharp in his first career start and then Ryne Moore (2.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 3 K) came on to toss 2.2 innings of perfect relief.
That pitching, along with a pair of a clutch RBI singles from freshmen Tommy Bell (2-4, RBI, R) and Erik Stock (2-3, RBI, R), allowed ODU to take a 3-1 lead into the seventh inning.
However, FIU (12-14, 3-3 C-USA) tallied a run in both the seventh and eighth to tie the game at 3-3 heading into the ninth.
Bell then led off the ninth with a single and was moved to third on a single through the right side by Devon Adams (1-1). Bell then scored what proved to be the game-winning run on a groundball to the right side by Bryce Windham (0-3, RBI).
Isaiah Nelson (1 IP, 0 H, 0 R) came on in the bottom half of the ninth to throw a perfect frame for his second save of the year. Connor Muly (1 IP, 1 H, 1 ER) earned his first career win.
"Three close games this weekend and we came out on the wrong side in the first two," said Finwood. "The guys really fought hard today and we found a way to win on Sunday, just like how we've been doing."
Up next, the Monarchs return to Norfolk to host William & Mary on Wednedsay at 6 p.m.
.@CoachFinny5 after today’s win at FIU. pic.twitter.com/p4G6nyBvVc
— Old Dominion Baseball (@ODUBaseball) March 25, 2018
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