Locked in a close battle with Benedict in the sixth inning, Miles got big hits late from Kolby Brannon, Reeves Brashear and Will Cantey to pull away from the Tigers in a 14-4 win Friday afternoon. Brannon and Brashear each had three hits and four runs batted in for the Golden Bears (28-17, 17-1 SIAC West) while Joseph Macaluso had three hits and two solo home runs for the Tigers (17-18, 7-10 SIAC).

Leading just 5-4, Brannon hit Macaluso's third pitch in the bottom of the sixth for a solo home run - his third of the season. That ended the day for Macaluso (0-1) but was just the beginning of the late power surge. Brashear thought he had earned a walk on a 3-1 pitch from Tigers reliever Jaylin Jennings but after a late strike call, he calmly got back in the batter's box and drilled the next pitch for a three-run bomb to left center - his eighth - and lifted Miles to a 9-4 advantage.

Miles would add two more runs in the seventh. In the eighth, Cantey would hit a bases-clearing double that would give the Golden Bears the victory as the game was ended via the 10-run rule. That would make a winner out of Dylan Johnson (9-3), who moved to 7-0 in conference play by pitching six innings, allowing eight hits and three earned runs with six strikeouts. 

The two teams close out the regular season with a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 11 a.m. Prior to the games, Miles will honor its senior class, which will play the final home contests of its career.