Bears erase 4-run deficit, stun Bellarmine to win series

CONWAY, Ark. — It wasn’t clean and it wasn’t comfortable, but Central Arkansas got the job done on Sunday afternoon.

The Bears trailed by four runs heading into the sixth inning before rallying past Bellarmine University 8-7 at Bear Stadium to claim the series.

With the win, UCA moved to 13-11 overall and 3-3 in conference play, while Bellarmine fell to 7-15 on the season.

It was the kind of game that tests a team’s resolve. Bellarmine jumped out to an early lead and kept piling on, but the Bears didn’t fold. Instead, they waited, found their openings and made them count in two decisive innings that changed everything.

Early Trouble for the Bears

Bellarmine wasted no time making things difficult for the home team. In the third inning, Jake Bell hit a home run to left field to put the Knights on the board.

AJ Swader followed with an RBI triple, and just like that, Bellarmine held a 2-0 lead before UCA had barely gotten started.

The Bears answered in the bottom of the third when Keon Moseni came through with an RBI single, trimming the deficit to 2-1. It was a small spark, but it didn’t last long.

Bellarmine struck again in the fourth inning when Mason Acton scored on a hit by pitch with the bases loaded, pushing the lead back out to 3-1.

Things got tougher in the fifth. Swader launched a solo home run, then Luke Scales added one of his own and Bellarmine’s lead grew to 5-1. The Knights had four home runs on the day, and through five innings, their pitching had kept the Bears in check. Bellarmine looked like the team in control of this game.

The Sixth Inning Turns It Around

That’s when UCA started writing a different story.

The sixth inning opened up in a big way for the Bears, who put together exactly the kind of multi-run frame they needed to get back into the game.

Nate Negre sparked the rally with a two-base hit, driving in Moseni to start the scoring. Jayden Sloan then delivered a sacrifice fly to bring in another run and Sam Reynolds followed with a sacrifice fly of his own.

Jagger Schattle capped the inning with an RBI single that tied the game at 5-5. Four runs, a leveled scoreboard and a Bear Stadium crowd that suddenly had plenty to cheer about.

The momentum had flipped completely. What had been a four-run hole was gone, and the Bears were playing with a new sense of purpose heading into the seventh.

Negre Delivers the Go-Ahead Blow

If the sixth inning tied it, the seventh inning won it. Negre stepped into the batter’s box with Moseni and Parker Gwyn on base and sent a three-run home run out of the park.

It was the kind of swing that shifts a series, and it put UCA ahead 8-5 with just two innings left to play.

Bellarmine managed to trim the lead to one run by the end of the game, with the final score sitting at 8-7. But the Knights couldn’t complete the comeback.

The eighth and ninth innings were scoreless for both teams, and the Bears walked off with the series victory.

Negre finished the afternoon as the clear standout at the plate, going 3-for-4 with two doubles, a home run and four RBIs. Moseni also had a strong day, finishing 2-for-3 with two runs scored, one RBI and a double of his own.

Alexander Steadies the Pitching Staff

Denver Hamilton started on the mound for UCA, working three innings and allowing three hits and two earned runs while striking out one and walking two.

Samuel Curtis came on in relief but got just one out before giving way, surrendering two hits and an earned run in his one-third of an inning of work.

That’s when Hunter Alexander took over, and he didn’t look back.

The senior right-hander pitched 5 2/3 innings, striking out five batters, allowing six hits and two earned runs and walking nobody.

Alexander earned the win to improve his record to 2-1 on the season. His command and durability over the back half of the game gave UCA’s offense the time it needed to do its work.

Up Next: A Road Test in Fayetteville

The Bears don’t get much time to celebrate.

UCA heads to Fayetteville to take on the Arkansas Razorbacks on Tuesday with first pitch set for 6 p.m. The game will air on SEC+ and can also be heard on The Bear 91.3.

It’s a big road matchup for a Bears team that’s shown it can battle back when things don’t go its way.

Sunday’s win over Bellarmine proved UCA has the pieces to flip a game in a hurry. That experience could matter when they step into a challenging environment against the Razorbacks.