HARRISONBURG, VA (WTKR)- Friday was a game Old Dominion baseball would like to forget, Saturday saw a comeback attempt fall short, but Sunday gave the Monarchs a reason to celebrate.
ODU overcame and early 4-0 deficit and salvaged a game of its series at James Madison, 8-5, in 11 innings. The victory clinches a Sun Belt Tournament berth for the silver and blue.
After finding itself in a four-run hole after two innings, the Monarchs quickly responded. Jay Tarkenton cranked a three-run home run to left field in the third and Kyle Edwards' solo shot tied the game up in the fifth inning. Robbie O'Neal's RBI groundout in the sixth pushed Old Dominion in front, but the Dukes would tie the contest back up in the ninth to force extra innings.
Chris Finwood's team came through in the 11th. Alex Bouche put the Monarchs back on top with an RBI groundout and Chris Dengler followed that up with a two-run single to round out the scoring.
Old Dominion improves to 31-20, 14-13 in Sun Belt play, and currently occupies eighth place in the league standings in a three-way tie with Georgia State and Georgia Southern. The Panthers visit Norfolk for a three game series to close out the regular season this week. The top ten teams in the conference qualify for the Sun Belt Tournament in Montgomery, Alabama.
Edwards paced the Monarchs on Sunday with a 3-for-4 showing at the plate and scored three runs. Tarkenton, Dengler and Kenny Lavari eached chipped in two hits apiece. Vincent Bashara tossed 1.2 innings of scoreless relief to pick up the victory, improving to 3-0 on the season.
ODU is back in action on Tuesday to begin a four game homestand when VCU visits Bud Metheny Baseball Complex. The Monarchs defeated the Rams last month in Richmond, 11-4. First pitch is set for 4:00 PM.
