GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Callen Nuccio went 3-for-5, drove in three runs, and scored three times to key VMI to a 10-4 victory over Furman in the opening game of a Southern Conference baseball series Friday evening at Latham Stadium.

Nuccio singled to lead off the game and later scored, reached on a error and scored in the seventh, and capped his performance with a three-run triple in the ninth inning to headline VMI's 18-hit attack.  The Keydets (14-33, 8-11 SoCon), who entered the game hitting just .244 as a team, added to their hit parade by executing four sacrifices.

Furman (18-27, 7-9 SoCon) had 12 hits but rapped into a pair of double plays and committed two errors in the contest.

Bret Huebner's two-run double in the second inning tied the game at 2-2, but the Paladins were outplayed the rest of the way.

VMI took the lead for good in the fifth on Josh Hollifield's RBI double and made it 5-2 in the seventh when Josh Clines was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and Nathan Lloyd delivered a sacrifice fly.

The Paladins' cut it to 5-3 in the bottom of the frame on Banks Griffith's second home run of the season, a solo shot to left field, but the Keydets put the game away with four runs in the ninth, including Nuccio's bases clearing, three-run triple into the right center field gap.

Jacob Menders (3-4) surrendered three runs on nine hits over 6 1/3 innings to earn the victory, and Derek Tremblay went the rest of the way to notch his first save of the season.

The loss was charged to John Michael Bertrand (3-4), who gave up five runs, four earned, on 10 hits over six innings.  His replacement, Jordan Beatson, was tagged for five runs on eight hits in three innings of work.

David Webel went 3-for-5 to pace Furman at the plate.

The two teams battle in game two of the series on Saturday at 1:00 p.m.