No. 24 Troy Run-Rules Northwestern State to Complete Sweep

Sunday, February 23

Troy, Ala.

12 p.m.

Troy University

6-1

Northwestern State

2-4

Northwestern State

Troy

No. 24 Troy Run-Rules Northwestern State to Complete Sweep

2/23/2025 4:55:00 PM | Baseball

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By: Troy Athletics Communications

TROY, Ala. - A competitive start on the mound by Drew Nelson and an explosive day at the plate propelled the No. 24 Troy Trojans to a 14-4 run-rule victory over Northwestern State to complete the three-game sweep.

Nelson, a Troy native, went 5.2 innings strong while carrying a no-hitter into the fifth inning. The junior lefty allowed four hits, two runs, two earned runs, four walks and four strikeouts while picking up his first win as a Trojan. Nelson escaped the fourth inning with a double play after allowing three walks and stranded two Demon base runners with two strikeouts.

The Troy offense got on the board in the first inning with Dillon Kuehl's first career hit resulting in an RBI single, and they never looked back. They put up five runs on NSU starter Trent Hillen in four innings, highlighted by a three-run blast by Sean Darnell in the second inning.

In the Troy bullpen, Kelly Crumpton and George Welch each made their debuts, with Crumpton recording the final out of the sixth inning. Welch struck out the first batter of the seventh but also allowed a walk and a hit-by-pitch. Brock Tapper recorded the final two outs of the seventh with a strikeout, while the Demons knocked in two runs with a single.

The Trojans stacked 14 hits in the ballgame while drawing 12 walks against the Demon pitching staff. They entered the bottom of the seventh up 9-4 before loading the bases for Brooks Bryan, who launched a grand slam over the right field wall. A few hitters later, Peyton Watts knocked in an RBI single into center to seal the run-rule victory.

Quick Hitters

The 14-4 win was Troy's second run-rule victory of the season. The Trojans defeated Bellarmine 23-6 in seven innings on opening day.
The Trojans swept each of their three-game series against Bellarmine and Northwestern State. The last time they picked up back-to-back sweeps was in 2023 when they rattled off three consecutive sweeps against Evansville, Stony Brook and USC Upstate.
The Troy offense drew 12 walks while striking out six times. They've had more walks than strikeouts in 5-of-7 games this season.
The Trojans drew double-digit walks for the third time this season.
The Trojans had 14 hits, which was their fourth double-digit hit game of the season.
The Troy defense committed zero errors for the first time this season.
Steven Meier went 2-for-4 with a double, extending his hitting streak to ten games and on-base streak to 14 games dating back to last season.
Meier's seven extra-base hits this season lead the team.
Meier had two stolen bases, which is a season-high.
Sean Darnell went 2-for-3 with a home run, two walks and three RBIs. It was his fourth multi-hit game and third RBI game.
Blake Cavill drew three walks, extending his on-base streak to 14 games dating back to last season.
Brooks Bryan went 3-for-5 with a home run and four RBIs, extending his hitting streak and on-base streak to six games.
Bryan's grand slam in the seventh inning was his first homer of the season and Troy's second grand slam of the season.
Dillon Kuehl made his first career start, going 3-for-4 with a double and three RBIs.
Cason Eubanks made his first career start, recording one walk and one RBI.
Drew Nelson recorded his first win as a Trojan, going 5.2 innings with four hits, two runs, two earned runs, four walks and four strikeouts.
Nelson's 5.2 innings was the second-deepest outing of his career. He pitched 7.0 innings against North Alabama as a freshman at Auburn in 2023.
Kelly Crumpton and George Welch each made their Troy debuts, going 0.1 innings each.
Brock Tapper pitched 0.2 innings, recording a strikeout.

Quotables

Head Coach Skylar Meade on the sweep and Sunday's win…

"As a whole, obviously winning every game is huge. I know that's pretty obvious, but I liked how we played our best ball today. Any team, any weekend, you want to have a rolling momentum, and so while we had a little glitch yesterday, we certainly picked ourselves back up. I thought we were really focused and locked in. When you have a focused dugout and good players, good things happen. We played clean baseball. No errors up on the board. Really big double play in the fourth when we got a little dicey with some self-imposed stuff. Just a good baseball game. I thought the at-bats in the last inning that got the game shortened; those walks were all 3-2 counts that we could've chased and could've been non-disciplined, and our guys weren't. Obviously, Brooks grinded the 3-2 and got the big swing, but just a great job by all parties to be honest with you."

Dillon Kuehl on getting his first career start…

"I've been seeing the ball well in batting practice and doing everything right. Just super dialed in. I was really excited when I heard I was getting the opportunity, and I just ran with it and never looked back."

Brooks Bryan on hitting his first homer of the season…

"It's kind of funny to talk about. I don't know how many I had this time last year, but my swing's been feeling really good. I've been hitting the ball all over the field, and I'm just going to stick with that approach. If I hit one in the air I always hope it goes out, so I'm just going to keep doing it."

Next Up

The Trojans head over to Starkville, Miss., to face Mississippi State on Tuesday before returning hope to Riddle-Pace Field on Wednesday against UAB.