NORFOLK, Va. – Visiting VMI took advantage of a season-high six errors and three costly passed balls from the Norfolk State defense to take a 9-4 victory in Wednesday's non-conference baseball game at Marty L. Miller Field.

The Keydets, who broke a seven-game losing streak, improved to 19-26 on the year, while NSU fell to 15-22.
 
VMI took a short-lived 1-0 lead on Brandon Angus' two-out RBI single in the third, but the Spartans answered right back with a pair of runs in the bottom of the inning. Zach Markel reached on a one-out walk and scored on Cameron Day's RBI double to the wall in left. Day later scored following Ryan Montgomery's bunt single to third base.

The game's key sequence came in the fifth. VMI loaded the bases thanks to a pair of walks and an error by NSU reliever Troy Applin. The Spartans brought in Justin Bhatti, and he appeared to get out of trouble as his defense turned a double play. Bhatti then looked as though he had fanned Angus for the final out of the inning, but the third strike was dropped, allowing Angus to reach first and extending the inning. Matt Winn was then nicked by a Bhatti pitch with the bases loaded to force in the tying run. Bhatti then threw a wild pitch to allow Drew Bryan to score from third to give VMI a lead. Nick Dwyer followed with an infield RBI single, pushing the advantage to 4-2. It was the only Keydet hit in the inning.

VMI got an RBI single from Bryan in the sixth and another on a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch in the seventh to go up 6-2. The Spartans got some late life on a two-out, two-run single by catcher Robert Reaume in the bottom of the seventh, but the Keydets answered right back with two more of their own in the eighth and one in the ninth. Angus added another run-scoring single and Eric Mayers scored on a passed ball in the eighth, while Jordan Tarsovich tacked on a two-out RBI single in the ninth.

Rian Ellis (1-2), the second of five VMI pitchers, earned the win with 1.2 scoreless innings of relief. Applin (1-3) took the loss, allowing one unearned run in one-plus inning of work.

Reaume was 2-for-4 with two RBI, while Day went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and an RBI for NSU. Angus was 3-for-6 for VMI.

The Spartans host Delaware State for a three-game MEAC Northern Division series this Saturday and Sunday. The teams play a 1 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday and a single game starting at noon on Sunday.