EVANSVILLE, Ind. (Interstat) — In a wild, back-and-forth affair Monday evening, the Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles scored the winning run on a passed ball in the eighth inning to edge the Bellarmine Knights 9-8 at the Physical Activities Center.

The game, a makeup of a March 18 contest won by Bellarmine 3-2, saw the Knights build an early six-run lead only for the Screaming Eagles to methodically chip away and complete the comeback.

Bellarmine struck immediately, plating two runs in the first inning on a two-run single by AJ Swader. The Knights then broke the game open in the second. Following singles by Eli Watson and Jake Bell, Nick Gnardellis launched a three-run homer to right field, extending the lead to 5-0.

Southern Indiana responded with two unearned runs in the bottom of the first after a leadoff error, but Bellarmine answered right back in the third. Watson laced a two-run double to right-center, scoring Mason Acton and Charlie Rife to push the advantage back to 8-2.

From there, the Screaming Eagles’ bullpen stabilized the game and the offense began its climb back. Reliever Sage Stout delivered two critical scoreless innings, allowing just one hit while striking out two. His effort allowed Southern Indiana to mount its rally.

The Screaming Eagles scored two in the fourth on a two-run double by Clayton Slack, then added three more in the fifth. Jesse Velders drove in a run with a double and Ethan Rothschild added a sacrifice fly, cutting the deficit to 8-6. Southern Indiana tied the game in the sixth, capitalizing on a hit batter, two singles and a fielder’s choice by Velders that plated the tying run.

Bellarmine reclaimed the lead in the top of the seventh when Swader smashed a solo home run to center field, his second hit and third RBI of the night. The 8-7 lead was short-lived.

In the decisive bottom of the eighth, Southern Indiana’s Collin Senior led off with a triple to right-center. Pinch-runner Dane DeWees then raced home on a passed ball to score the go-ahead run, giving the Screaming Eagles their first lead of the afternoon at 9-8.

Southern Indiana turned to Nathan Anderson to close it in the ninth, and he struck out the side around a hit batter and a single to secure the victory.

The most important part of the game was Southern Indiana’s relentless bullpen work, which halted Bellarmine’s powerful offense after the third inning. Following Stout’s key outing, four other relievers combined to allow just one run over the final six frames. This pitching stability was the foundation for the comeback, as the Knights managed only four hits after the third inning despite finishing with 13 total.

Swader led Bellarmine, going 2-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs. Watson was a perfect 3-for-3 with two RBIs before being lifted for a pinch-runner. For Southern Indiana, Senior went 3-for-5 with an RBI and the crucial eighth-inning triple, while Velders drove in two runs.

With the win, Southern Indiana improved to 20-13 on the season. Bellarmine fell to 13-18. The Screaming Eagles’ victory defied a pregame projection from Interstat’s game simulator, which had forecast a 7-5 Bellarmine win, though the service’s ELO system gave Southern Indiana a 68.3% probability to win.