Box Score
The Dallas Baptist University Patriots Baseball Team improved to 32-12 for the season on Friday night as they defeated the nationally ranked Texas A&M Aggies in College Station, Texas, by the score of 11-10. The Aggies fell to 30-16 on the year after the loss.
Starting pitcher Junior Ryan Millard pitched four innings for the Patriots allowing six runs on eight hits. Freshman Michael Smith picked up the win, improving his record to 5-0 on the season as he pitched four innings in relief allowing four runs on three hits while striking out three. Freshman Ryan Behmanesh closed out the Aggies in the ninth inning, striking out two to record his second save of the season.
Leading the Patriots at the plate was Sophomore Jason Krizan. Krizan went 3 for 5, hitting one homerun and two doubles in the win, while adding three RBI.
After a scoreless first inning, the Patriots jumped on the Aggies early, scoring one run in the top of the second and two more in the third to leave the score, 3-0. Senior Brandon Bantz reached base for the Patriots in the second inning before being pushed across the plate on a Senior Trevor Head double to right center field to take the lead, 1-0. Junior Travis Meiners crushed a solo homerun, his fifth of the season, over the wall in left center field in the third inning, before Krizan hit a RBI double to score Junior Ryan Goins on the play after reaching base by a walk.
The Aggies' bats came alive in the third inning as Caleb Shofner belted a three run homerun off of Millard to tie the game, 3-3. Then in the bottom of the fourth inning Brodie Greene hit a three run homerun of his own to give the Aggies the lead, 6-3.
The Patriots responded by putting two runs on the board in the top of the fifth inning. Goins reached base on his second walk of the game, then scored on a Krizan RBI double to right center field. Junior Ryan Thompson stepped up to the plate and snuck one up the middle on the Aggies to score Krizan for the second run of the inning.
Junior Austin Knight singled to lead off the sixth inning. Senior Clay Kelly reached on an Aggie throwing error, advancing Knight to second. Junior Ryan Enos laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance the runners to second and third. Meiners walked to load the bases and set up for a Goins grand slam over the wall in dead center field to give the Patriots the lead, 9-6.
The Patriots added a single run in the top of the seventh when Bantz led off the inning with a solo homerun, his ninth of the season, over the left field wall, leaving the score, 10-6.
The Aggies fought back putting four runs on the board in the bottom of the seventh inning to tie the game, 10-10. Greene scored on a Luke Anders sacrifice fly out, before Joe Patterson hit the Aggies third three run homerun on the night to erase the Patriot lead.
In the top of the eighth inning, Krizan hit a solo homerun, his 14th of the season, to give the Patriots the slight edge, 11-10.
Smith shut down the Aggie offense in the eighth, and then Behmanesh pitched a scoreless ninth inning for the Patriots striking out two batters to capture his second save on the year.
The Patriots are back in action again tomorrow in College Station, Texas, as they face the Aggies for the third and final game of the series. The first pitch is slated for 2:05 p.m.
