Bolivar, Mo. – On Friday evening, at Dodson Field, the SBU baseball team hosted the #2 team in Division II the University of Central Missouri Mules (UCM). The Bearcats held strong with the Mules in both games, even holding a lead, until the offensive prowess of UCM came out late into the games. SBU fell in both moving to 2-4 on the season.
 
Game one ended with a final score of 4-14. The first four innings of the game remained scoreless due to stellar pitching on both sides, with Bearcat ace Ryne Kaiser starting on the mound. He threw 4.2 innings with two strikeouts and two runs allowed. After the Mules, scored a total of four runs in the 5^th and 6^th inning, SBU answered back with two of their own. UCM went on a run from their putting the game out of reach, however junior Beau Honeycutt recorded three RBIs in the game including a two-run blast.
 
More runs were scored early into game two as UCM took the lead in the 2^nd. Southwest Baptist battled right back in the bottom half of the inning when Jared Pugrad knocked in Raydley Legito and Reese Ruderman giving SBU a 2-1 lead. After the Mules tied it at two, Lane Snow and Legito notched an RBI each putting the Bearcats ahead 4-2. Snow recorded two more RBI's in the game before a big sixth inning from UCM put them ahead the rest of the way.
 
Eli Stewart started on the mound throwing six strikeouts in five innings, but the loss for the game went to his reliever Jude Sundquist. Roberto Garcia and Caden Norman also saw time on the mound.
 
Southwest Baptist will have the weekend off before returning Friday and Saturday, February 21^st in Owensboro, Kentucky. They will take on Kentucky Wesleyan in a three-game series.