UPLAND, Ind. - The Kansas Wesleyan Coyotes trailed No. 2 seeded and No. 17 ranked Bellevue 3-1 heading into the seventh inning of Monday's NAIA Opening Round game at Winterholter Field at Taylor University.
The Coyotes, who have come back in late game situations several times, were ready to do it again.
Wesleyan got a seventh inning homer by Blake Dale, and two 2-run shots by Garrett Garfield and Carter Allen in the eighth to complete the rally and pick up a 6-4 win over the Bruins.
The victory moves the Coyotes along in the winner's bracket of the Opening Round, where they will face top-seeded and No. 9 ranked Taylor on Tuesday at 3 p.m. Central, 4 p.m. Eastern time. Taylor beat Grand View 13-3 in Monday's other first round game.
The Coyotes opened with a 1-0 lead in the top of the first. Garfield singled with two outs and then scored when Fernando Ruvalcaba singled and a throwing error would bring in Garfield.
Bellevue jumped into the lead 2-1 in the bottom of the fourth inning on a 2-run homer and in the sixth inning pushed the lead out to 3-1 on a sacrifice fly.
Then it was Wesleyan's turn. Dale brought the Coyotes within a run in the top of the seventh on a solo homer and the Coyotes took the lead in the eighth.
Jacob Williamson led off the inning with a walk and moved to second on a passed ball, but was thrown out trying to score on a double by Tyler Favretto. Garfield then stepped up and smashed a ball out to left field for a 2-run homer putting the Coyotes up 4-3.
After Ruvalcaba singled, Allen stepped up and crushed another ball out to left to put the Coyotes up 6-3.
Bellevue got one back in the bottom of the eighth, and in the ninth, Ritter Steinmann came in and closed the door, recording his ninth save of the season recording all three outs in the inning.
Garfield had three of KWU's 12 hits in the game and drove in two runs. Ruvalcaba, Dale and Eric Romero had two hits each.