Hilltoppers sweep season series over Belmont with 9-8 comeback win

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – WKU Baseball (17-16) defeated Belmont (12-21) 9-8 on Tuesday night at Nick Denes Field.

The Hilltoppers scored four runs in the bottom of the eighth, winning in come from behind fashion. JP Acosta had a two-RBI single to pull WKU within a run and Austin Haller drove in the game-tying and go-ahead runs en route to a 9-8 victory. Both Acosta and Haller finished with two hits on Tuesday.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Bruins loaded the bases in the second and an infield single plated two to give Belmont a 2-0 lead.
• With two out in the third, Reid Howard lined a triple into the left field wall to score JP Acosta from second and cut the deficit to one.
• The Bruins loaded the bases again in the fifth and took a 3-1 lead on a wild pitch.
• Belmont added a run in the sixth to take a three-run lead.
• A one out walk in the Hilltopper sixth followed by a pair of hits by Lane Arroyos and Kyle Hayes scored Camden Ross and made it a 4-2 game.
• Parker Coley followed with a sacrifice fly to deep left field to plate Arroyos and cut the deficit down to one.
• Daniel Stewart laced a ball down the left field line that scored Hayes to even the score at 4-4.
• With the bases loaded and two outs, Reid Howard walked to score pinch runner Keifer Tarnoki to give the Hilltoppers their first lead of the game at 5-4.
• Belmont scored two runs in the seventh and two in the eighth to take an 8-5 lead.
• A leadoff walk followed by a double by Tarnoki gave JP Acosta a chance with two in scoring position. Acosta’s base hit into center field scored Coley and Tarnoki to pull WKU with a run.
• A sacrifice bunt from Howard moved runners over to second and third.
• After a pitching change, Austin Haller lined a ball into left center to plate two and give WKU a 9-8 lead.
• Nathan Lawson closed out the ninth to give WKU its 17th win of the year and his second save.

NOTABLES

• The Hilltoppers improve to 17-16 on the year.
• WKU now holds a 31-26 series advantage over Belmont and has swept the season series with the Bruins.
• The win marked the fifth straight for WKU over Belmont in a series dating back to 1954.
• Gage Olsen started for WKU on Tuesday. Olsen’s start on Tuesday marked his first appearance since March 20 at Jax State.
• Out of the bullpen Bryson Vawter, Jude Favela, Dominic Monaco, Ka’olu Holt, Dawson Hall, and Nathan Lawson.
• Hall earned the win on Tuesday, tossing 2.0 innings, allowing two runs (earned) on four hits with three strikeouts.
• Hall’s 2.0 innings of work out of the bullpen matched his season long.
• Lawson picked up his second save as a Hilltopper, closing out the ninth and recording a strikeout against three batters faced.
• JP Acosta paced the offense on Tuesday with a 2-for-3 night with two RBIs and a run.
• Acosta scored the go-ahead run for WKU in the eighth inning.
• Austin Haller also had a two hit night, finishing 2-for-4 with two RBIs.
• Both of Haller’s RBIs came in the eighth inning and were the go-ahead runs for WKU.
• Tuesday marked Haller’s 10th multi-hit game of the season. Haller has now recorded two hits in each of his last three games.
• Kiefer Tarnoki entered as a pinch runner and subbed in at the designated hitter spot, going 1-for-1 with one plate appearance and a team high two runs scored.
• Tarnoki has now logged two runs in a game on two occasions.
• Reid Howard logged his second triple of 2026, finishing 1-for-3 with two RBIs and a walk.

QUOTABLE

On the win head coach Marc Rardin said “To come back and score four runs in the bottom of the eighth is big. They showed they have fight and that’s the number one thing you need to see as a coach. It doesn’t matter how much skill you have, you have to have the will to win. Thursday we’ll be back in the classroom covering some stuff and get out on the field and try to get better before the weekend.”

NEXT UP

WKU will host New Mexico State for a three-game CUSA series starting Friday, April 10. First pitch from Nick Denes Field is slated for 6 p.m. CT and will be streaming on ESPN+ with audio on the Varsity Network.