ANNAPOLIS, Md. – In a doubleheader that saw senior Landon Kruer make Patriot League history and the Midshipmen hit four home runs, the Navy baseball team posted a pair of seven-inning wins, 6-4 and 13-12, over Bucknell on Saturday afternoon at Terwilliger Brothers Field at Max Bishop Stadium.
 
Helping extend the Mids' winning streak to five games and securing both the weekend and season series with the Bison, the Navy quartet of Victor Izquierdo, Tyler Bouchard, Brock Murtha and Ty DePerno all homered while Kruer notched his league-record 29th career save in a day that saw the two side combine for 35 runs and 45 hits.
 
Game One Recap
Navy got the scoring going early in the afternoon, as the Mids used two singles and a walk to load the bases in the bottom of the first inning, with a dropped infield fly allowing Chris Klug to race home for the game's first run, while an Izquierdo groundout one pitch later plated Murtha to make it 2-0.
 
Bucknell cut into the Navy lead in the third, as a Billy Fluharty walk was followed by a Tyler Dunn into the gap, but Navy starter Brady Bendik then got two swinging strikeouts to strand Dunn at third base. With DePerno working a two-out in the bottom of the frame, Izquierdo then blasted a line drive over the left-field wall for his first home run of the season, while Bouchard's two-out solo shot in the fourth hooked just inside the right foul pole to extend the Navy lead to 5-1.
 
The Bison cut it to a one-run game again in the fifth when Dunn connected on an RBI single, Billy Kender doubled down the left-field line to score Dunn, and a Michael Trommer single into center brought Kender in to make it 5-4. Murtha did not keep it a one-run game for long, launching an opposite-field homer to lead off the home half of the fifth, but Samuel Janik stranded two runners later in the inning to keep Bucknell down two runs.
 
Coming in for the seventh, Kruer induced two flyouts to start the frame before Kender sneaked a single up the middle, but Kruer then struck out Trommer to seal the win and surpass former Holy Cross pitcher John Colella for the Patriot League career saves record.
 
Bendik battled through six innings for the win, allowing four runs (one earned) on six hits and racking up a career-best nine strikeouts, while Kruer posted his fourth save of the season with the one-inning appearance.
 
On Bucknell's side, Ben Magovern lasted four frames and surrendered five runs on four hits to receive the loss, while Janik held Navy to one run on four hits in his two-inning outing.
 
Game Two Recap
A loud offensive start from Navy propelled the Mids to the nightcap victory, as a six-run first inning featured Murtha's RBI groundout, DePerno's two-run blast to straightaway center, Evan Brown legging out an RBI triple and Bouchard pulling a two-run double down the line.
 
Bucknell answered quickly by plating two runs in the top of the second via Ryan Facinelli's RBI single up the middle and a Matt Alexander sacrifice fly, but Navy once again had a monster frame with a seven-run outburst in the bottom of the second. Kicked off by a pair of hit-by-pitches and DePerno singling home Murtha, the Mids then had Brown and Henry Mitchell both post bases-loaded infield singles, Bouchard lace a two-run single into right field, Mitchell score on a wild pitch and Murtha cap it off with a double to plate Bouchard for the 13th and final Navy run of the contest.

Bucknell started its lofty comeback attempt in the top of the third, as sacrifice flyouts from Luke Nascimento and Chris Morabito preceded Facinelli's solo homer to right field, cutting it to 13-5, while a five-run fourth inning saw Nascimento hit a two-run double and Morabito blast a two-run homer and John Calabrese rope an RBI single, making it 13-10 Navy.
 
The Bison finally it brought back within one run in the fifth inning, as Trommer singled home Dunn after Dunn doubled on a hit that saw Klug and Bouchard collide, forcing Bouchard out of the game, while Facinelli then singled in Tommer to make it 13-12. Coming on with the bases loaded, Mikey Plummer got Alexander to ground out to end the threat, but Navy squandered its own bases-loaded, no-out opportunity in the bottom of the fifth to keep it a one-score game.
 
After retiring the Bison in order in the sixth, Plummer worked himself into a bases-loaded situation in the seventh but forced another Alexander groundout to hold on for his first collegiate save and clinch Navy's fifth-straight win.
 
After starter Kody Clancy lasted 1.2 innings, Navy pieced together the rest of the game with 1.1 innings from Jackson Beattie and 0.2 innings out of Adyn Lucero before Spencer Stephens struck out two in his one frame to pick up the win and hand the ball off to Plummer for the 2.1-inning save.
 
For Bucknell, starter Everett Garber did not make it out of the first inning and was hung with the loss, while Bryce Mitchell recorded one out on five batters faced, Nick Mulvey soaked up three innings with six strikeouts and Hadley Mitchell finished it out with two scoreless frames and five punchouts for the Bison.
 
Game Notes
• Navy is now 99-86-1 in the all-time series with Bucknell.
• Saturday's first game marked Bendik's second quality start of the season, following a six-inning, one-run outing against Air Force on Feb. 21.
• Jack Killelea extended his hit streak to 12 games.
• Brown saw his hitting streak snapped but moved his on-base streak to 11-straight contests.
• Bouchard collected four hits, five RBI and two runs scored in the doubleheader, with his four RBI in the nightcap marking a career high.
• DePerno now has four three-hit games this season after going 3-for-3 in the nightcap with three RBI.
 
Up Next
Navy will go for the weekend sweep against Bucknell on Sunday, with the series finale set for a 1:05 p.m. first pitch on ESPN+ and WNAV Radio.