NASHVILLE, Tenn. – University of Montevallo junior Steven Knudson homered for the 17th time this season in the Falcons' 12-4 win on the road at Trevecca Nazarene University in a non-conference game March 31.
Knudson, who is second nationally in NCAA Division II with 17 home runs, is only eight homers away from tying the school record of 25 home runs set by Chris Walker during the 1988 season after blasting his seventh bomb in 10 games.
Knudson, who drove in one run and scored three runs, finished 1-for-3 at the plate in the victory.
The two teams will face off again tomorrow night in Nashville as the Falcons look to sweep the Trojans in a pair of mid-week contests. First pitch is set for 5 p.m.
Senior Matthew Haskins led the Falcons (16-15) offensively in the victory in the first game as he finished 3-for-5 at the plate. Haskins drove in two runs and scored one run.
Junior Jeremy Hyde, who drove in two runs and scored two runs, went 2-for-3 at the plate with a double. Fellow junior Thomas Bradey, who drove in two runs and scored one run, finished 2-for-4 at the plate with a double. Sophomore Alex Jones, who drove in one run and scored one run, went 2-for-5 at the plate.
Sophomore Dane Hutcheon finished 1-for-5 at the plate and scored one run. Senior Vinny Rodriguez finished 1-for-6 at the plate with a double. Junior Michael Simmons, who drove in one run and scored one run, went 1-for-1 at the plate in a pinch-hitting role.
Senior Cody White and freshman Collin Dupree scored one run each.
Freshman Drew Mullinax (2-2) earned the win on the mound in his third start this season after giving up four unearned runs on five hits with six strikeouts and no walks in seven innings, the longest outing of his short career with the Falcons.
Fellow freshman Colton Nussell allowed just one hit and finished with three strikeouts in two scoreless innings in relief. Mullinax and Nussell registered nine strikeouts combined without issuing a single walk.
The Falcons got on the scoreboard early with two runs in the top of the first inning, with Knudson and Hutcheon scoring on a two-run double by Hyde to give Montevallo a 2-0 lead.
After the Trojans plated four runs in the bottom of the second to take a 4-2 lead, the Falcons answered with 10 consecutive runs the rest of the way.
Montevallo scored three runs in the top of the third inning to take a 5-4 advantage. Haskins scored when Jones was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to account for the first run in the frame. Hyde and Knudson came around to score later in the inning on a two-run double by Bradey.
Knudson's solo homer in the top of the fourth inning pushed the Falcons' lead to 6-4.
Montevallo plated a pair of runs in the top of the fifth inning to push its lead to 8-4. Bradey scored when Hutcheon reached on an error by the Trojans and Haskins plated White with a RBI single in the frame.
The Falcons extended their lead to 12-4 with four runs in the top of the eighth inning. Hyde scored the first run in the frame on an error by the Trojans. Simmons plated Dupree with an RBI single and Dupree scored on another error before Simmons came around to score on a RBI single by Haskins.
