THOMASVILLE, Ga. –  Behind the bat of Josh Bruin and the arm of TU's starting pitcher Tate Lambert, the Thomas University baseball team upset No. 18 Embry-Riddle this afternoon in their 3-1 victory in the opening matchup of their three game set against the Eagles.
 
Early on, the contest was a battle between the starting pitchers.  Both pitched five scoreless innings heading into the sixth.  Lambert, who had a game high nine strikeouts in his seven innings of shutout work, set the Eagles down in the top of the sixth before the Night Hawks would take the 2-0 lead in the bottom frame.
 
Center fielder Jalbert Melo worked a lengthy at bat fouling off three pitches with a 3-2 count before reaching on an infield single deep at short.  Three pitches later, Bruijn smashed a hanging curve over the left field fence to give Thomas the 2-0 advantage.  This blast was Bruijn's sixth of the season.
 
Embry-Riddle countered Thomas' offensive power in the top of the 8th to cut their lead in half, 2-1. After reliever Justin Hicks worked out of the jam in the top half of the inning, the Night Hawks knocked in an insurance run in the bottom frame.  Melo and Bruijn started the inning off reaching on back-to-back walks.  Thomas would take the 3-1 lead scoring their final run of the game on an erred throw by ERAU's catcher who was looking to force Melo out at third.  The ball shot past the covering third baseman allowing Melo to score.
 
Hicks ended the showdown setting down the Eagles in their final three outs of the game.
 
Lambert (4-4) picked up the win while ERAU's starter Stetson Nelson (3-3) was credited with the loss.  Hicks picked up his second save of the season allowing one run on three hits.
 
"An all-around great effort today by each player," stated head coach Mike Lee.  "Lambert and Hicks did a great job shutting down their bats, and Bruijn stepped up in a timely manner.  Tomorrow is a big day for us."
 
Thomas improves to 15-15-1, 7-8 TSC, while No. 18 Embry-Riddle drops to 22-13, 9-6 TSC.
 
The Night Hawks return to action on Sat., March 28 when they wrap up their three game set with a twin bill against 18th ranked Embry-Riddle.  First pitch is set for 12:00 p.m. with the series finale starting 30 minutes after the conclusion of the previous game.
 
For up-to-date information on this game and other TU Athletics, visit www.TUNightHawks.com.  Stay up-to-date with news, scores, photos, game summaries, and feature stories of your TU baseball team by following them via Twitter at @NightHawkBaseba.