Baseball Gets Back on Winning Track With Sweep Over Centralia

Stroosma in action

Bellevue College Baseball traveled to Lacey, WA for an 11:00 AM make up game on Tuesday, March 4 against Centralia, and won both by scores of  2-0 and 13-4.  In game one, Centralia’s Jake Conover held Bellevue’s bats in check but was outperformed on the mound by returning Bellevue pitcher Brandon Mahovlich, who showed his veteran poise on the mound by striking out five without giving up a run or walk in his five inning debut.  Sheldon Stober got Bellevue on the board with an RBI in the fifth and led the team with three hits. In game two, Bellevue was in another close game until the later innings. For the second game in a row, good starting pitching kept Bellevue in it as Alex Hatch, another returning starter for Bellevue, gave up only one run and one walk in four innings of work before giving way to Koleman Johns, who earned the win in his college debut. Aaron Sandefur was polished in the relief role and earned the save. Bellevue broke it open with eight runs in the final two innings as Jordan Silva had three hits in addition to Aaron Stroosma’s second home run of the year. Stroosma and fellow sophomore John Bodenhamer, both have two home runs apiece already this season.

The Bulldogs host fellow NWAACC powerhouse, Pierce College this weekend for a four-game set. Saturday’s doubleheader will be a 7 inning followed by a nine inning game beginning at noon at Bellevue’s Courter Field. Sunday’s game will be a noon start 9 inning game followed by a 7 inning affair at Heritage Rec Center in Puyallup (new site due to pending forecast of rain). The series with Pierce should be a good test, as the two teams collectively have finished in the top three in the NWAACC Championships for the last three years, with Bellevue winning the  title in 2011 and Pierce in 2012. Last spring Pierce was runner up while Bellevue took third. Following this weekend, Bellevue will embark on a six-game in three day road trip to Phoenix, where a projected forecast of sunny mid-80 degree weather will be a welcome change from the wet pre-season so far here in the Pacific Northwest.

Last Updated March 31, 2014