ST. LOUIS (Interstat) — The Lindenwood Lions used a dominant pitching performance and a late offensive surge to rout the Saint Louis Billikens 9-1 in a nonconference baseball game Tuesday evening.

The Lions evened their season record at 18-18, while the Billikens fell to 15-21.

The most important part of the game was the collective effort of the Lindenwood bullpen, which followed a stellar start from Ethan Smith with 6.0 innings of near-perfect relief. Smith, named the top star for Lindenwood, set the tone with three hitless innings, striking out three. His outing marked a sharp rebound from his previous start on April 3, when he allowed four earned runs against Southeast Missouri State.

Lindenwood’s relievers preserved the shutout bid and stifled any Saint Louis momentum. After Smith, Luke Wright delivered 2.1 hitless innings with two strikeouts. Dillon Haftorson recorded two outs in the eighth, and Tanner Paschke struck out two in a scoreless ninth. The only blemish was a single unearned run charged to Ethan Milius in the fifth inning, which came via a sacrifice fly from Saint Louis’s D. Kleinheide.

The Lions’ offense, which managed nine hits, broke open a tight game with a four-run seventh inning. Trailing 1-0, the Billikens’ pitching staff issued three walks and hit two batters in the frame. Lindenwood capitalized as Sam Driscoll was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, Charlie IsomMcCall drew a bases-loaded walk, Will Geary was also hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, and Will Zare drew yet another bases-loaded walk to push the lead to 5-1.

Lindenwood added four insurance runs in the ninth inning against the Saint Louis bullpen. IsomMcCall delivered a key RBI single, scoring Driscoll. Pinch-hitter Tanner Simps followed with an RBI single to plate IsomMcCall, and another pinch-hitter, Matt Graf, singled home Simps to cap the scoring. IsomMcCall finished 2 for 4 with two RBIs and two runs scored.

Saint Louis pitchers struggled with command, combining to issue eight walks and hit three batters. The Billikens’ staff was highlighted by strong relief outings from Dylan Gormont, who struck out four over two perfect innings, and Caden Earing, who allowed just two hits over three scoreless frames. Liam McKinney started and took the loss.

The Billikens collected eight hits but grounded into two double plays and went 1 for 10 with runners in scoring position, stranding nine baserunners. I. Blazier led Saint Louis, going 2 for 4 with a double and a walk.

Lindenwood has now won four of its last five games. Saint Louis has lost two of its last three.

The two teams are scheduled to meet again Wednesday at Saint Louis.